My Elixr (PapyrusReader)
by dontbeupsettihavespaghetti
Summary: Life was a cruel game of trying to survive against the odds, and it seemed life had given you all the wrong cards. Being a homeless orphan, with crippling self-hate, anxiety and severe trust issues- that was your hand... you were condemned to a life of bad choices. You really didn't expect a walking, talking, sentient skeleton to change all of that...let alone fall in love with him
1. Rescue

**Author note** \- Well if you haven't read the tags yet, this is going to be a Papyrus/reader fic, I've wanted to write a Undertale fic for a while now… and I am a big Papyrus fan so I thought 'why not write a fic I could insert myself into and make all my spaghetti dreams come true?'

This is too basically to sate my sinful love of my husbando… but be warned, this fic might be slow burn, and will have a lot (A LOT) of angst and hopefully plot. There will be smut as well, but much later on in the fic…

That's pretty much everything, I will always put possible trigger warnings before the chapter as well. But expect this fic to get dark at times.

Anyway, enjoy!

(Possible triggers this chapter- _**attempted rape, murder, blood, violence, gang violence**_ , _**mentions of drugs**_ , etc. You've been warned.)

-x-

 **Chapter one**

It was a chilly evening in the city, the cold biting air punctured through your thin brown coat. You wished you wrapped up warmer, not that you had anything else to wear.

You needed to find shelter before it turned completely dark…

You've been couch surfing for about a year now, the orphanage had kicked you out as soon as you turned eighteen. You didn't care, you hated that godforsaken place anyway.

Being homeless was better than being there.

Walking past a brightly lit clothes shop, you stared into your reflection in the window. Your eyes were baggy and had dark tired rings underneath, your hair looked greasy and was tied up tightly into a small bun… you haven't been able to wash it for a while now. You didn't care though, your appearance never mattered much to you anyway. Even though you looked like a complete mess.

Letting out a sigh, you continued past the shop… completely unaware that you were being followed.

You didn't realize until it was too late, they snuck up from the alleyway beside you.

"Hey gorgeous," A voice spoke up from behind you. Turning around, you came face to face with your ex. Cameron. "Miss me?"

Cameron stood there with a smug expression, his dirty blonde hair spiked up and his piercing grey eyes burning into you. He was lean and toned, having lived rough for many years before you. You don't quite remember why you went out with him, those were a dark few months for you… which you hated to remember.

"Why are you following me, creep?" You boldly spoke, trying to show you weren't scared. Cameron was like a vulture- he loved to pick on the weak. "As for your question- no."

"Aw, don't be like that… babycakes." Cameron tittered, walking towards you with a predatory glint. This was when you noticed the others, Cameron had brought his not so nice friends with him. Your heart began to beat wildly.

"Last time I recall…" Cameron began, cornering you against the alley wall. You began to hyperventilate. "You owe me some money."

"Look, I just need a couple more-"

"No!" Cameron yelled, lashing out and hitting the wall- just an inch away from your face. You instinctively flinched, managing to stay quiet… you were fucking terrified though.

"I gave you chances, I was kind enough not to fucking beat you to death when you stole that money!" Cameron ranted, his face contorted into a cruel expression. "You're lucky I had mercy for you, you stupid bitch!"

"Mercy!?" You yelled back, fear turning into rage. Cameron looked shocked at my outburst, expecting you to burst into tears rather than retaliate. But you weren't going to go down so easy.

"You make me laugh!" You couldn't see past your anger induced fog. "Mercy is treating your girlfriend like a human being, not selling her off to men for money, or getting her addicted to drugs… and definitely not hitting her, you scumbag."

You didn't even realize Cameron punched you, until you found yourself on the ground staring at the sky. You groaned out, trying to get up… but it was painful.

"Now now…" Cameron whispered, petting your hair. You made a disgusted expression, hoping your glare could kill. "Let's get to the point, shall we?"

"Seeing how you're poor as fuck, and I can't trust you to pay me back…" Cameron gestured to his 'friends'. "I'm sure you can pay… just in a different way. A trade if you will."

"No…" You gasped out, the group advancing on you. You looked for help, but the alley was deserted and who would give a shit anyway? "Stop… please!"

Hands began grabbing you, tearing your coat off- leaving you just in your jeans and dirtied vest top. You began to scream, hoping to get attention from a passer-by…

But nobody came.

"Get the fuck off me!" You yelled out again, kicking your leg out. Hearing a cry of pain, you began to lash out- clawing at the hands and at one point biting a guy on his cheek.

"Agh fucking feral bitch!"

You didn't realize they had knives.

"Oh…" Looking down at your tattered top, you noticed a deep slash across your stomach. You stared blankly as blood gushed out. "Shit."

Cameron was staring at you with a shocked expression, but it soon turned into his usual smugness. The other men didn't seem to care, some chuckled while others shrugged.

"You probably have a few minutes to make use of the body," Cameron said to them, and in a flash they advanced again. You were too weak to resist, too busy applying pressure to your stomach.

"F-fucking… sickos…" You gasped out, your vision turning black. You could feel hands tearing your clothes off, you braced yourself for pain…

"HUMANS, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"

You could feel the intrusive hands freeze in shock.

"What the fuck is that!?"

"A-a-a… monster!?"

"Fuck that!"

You couldn't really see what was going on, only that the hands left you and you could hear your attackers running away.

You were thankful it was over.

Even though you were going to die.

You could feel a much taller presence approach you warily, although you couldn't see him through the dark fog. When his (gloved?) hands applied more pressure on your stomach, you gave a shaky smile to his direction.

"OH NO… WHAT DID THEY DO TO YOU?" The voice said, sounding extremely upset. You grabbed onto the hand, thankful for the comfort in your last minutes of life.

"T-thank… y-you…" You gasped out, the pain was too much.

"HUMAN!?" Was the last thing you heard before you succumbed to the darkness…

It was a nice voice.


	2. Welcome

**Author note-** Here's the second chapter! Just some meeting of some characters and maybe a little fluff?

I appreciate constructive criticism, especially with how I write and whether the characters are in-character. So if you have something CONSTRUCTIVE to say, please do!

There's not much else to say, so enjoy!

(Possible triggers- **Negative thoughts, medical stuff- but not very detailed at all, just description of pain… nothing else trigger-y here)**

-x-

 **Chapter two** -

You didn't know how long you were unconscious, only that you could hear flashes of concerned voices. That voice you liked stayed with you almost the entire time, his comforting presence calmed you.

Maybe you were dead and this was limbo… you probably didn't deserve heaven, if there was one.

The voices quieted, and you missed them. Now the darkness was lonely, and overwhelming.

But, you could see a faint light in the distance- seeming miles away.

Your body was heavy, and the surrounding blackness felt like a weight which was pulling you down. But you were determined, and that light look so _nice_.

You began to move towards it, your only goal was to reach it and… well, and you supposed dying wasn't completely terrible. Your life was shit anyway, might as well see what's on the other side.

It took what felt like hours to get closer, you could almost touch it…

But then…

" _My child, you must wake up…"_ A voice echoed in the darkness, distracting you from the light. You turned to face the voice, but nobody was there in the void.

" _Please… we are worried…_ " The voice spoke up again, you could hear the sadness in her voice. It caused a surge of pure emotion to erupt inside you.

 _I don't want to die_ , you thought.

You began to follow the voice, turning away from the light.

"Please keep talking…" You said aloud, hoping the woman would hear you. She sounded so motherly and nice, and you could feel your body getting lighter the closer you walked to the sound.

" _If you wake up, I shall bake some cinnamon-butterscotch pie… would you like that my child?"_

It sounded delicious, you walked more determinedly towards the voice. She sounded like she was just in front of you. The darkness began to fade into light, it was blinding.

" _Child… please wake up…_ "

* * *

"Ugh…" You groaned out, the motherly voice that was talking to you stopped in shock. You could feel a… furry hand on your face?

Despite your eyes feeling glued shut, you needed to see this person- to thank them. Also to ask why their hands are so hairy.

Slowly, you inched your eyes open and immediately flinched as the light assaulted your eyes. Groaning out again, you waited for them to adjust- the white blob above you beginning to focus.

You stared at the woman above you, well, you were sure it was a woman. The monster that looked awfully like a goat stared back, her hand still on your forehead.

Which was glowing.

"AH!" You screamed, trying to roll away in fear. But it only caused your stomach to pulse strongly in pain, the excruciating feeling making you nauseous.

"Be careful!" The goat woman gasped in worry, trying to hold you still while you freaked out. "Your wounds will reopen… please be still, my child."

You couldn't do anything but stay still, you almost passed out from the pain but you somehow managed to stay conscious. You breathed deeply, that action itself making your stomach ache badly. You couldn't help but stare at the woman again, the initial panic dying down- replaced with sheepishness.

You were aware of the monsters, they had been on the surface for nearly a year. But you've never come across them in person, they had tight-knit communities and stayed away from most highly populated places. Things were tense between humans and monsters, the last you heard.

It was just a shock to see one, but admittedly you felt bad. It seemed like the goat woman wanted to help, and her voice was quite soothing. Looking closer, she didn't seem intimidating at all.

"S-sorry…" You whispered, looking down in shame. "I… I just didn't expect to see a monster… uhm not that I avoid you guys… but… uh… I'm rubbish at this."

The monster seemed slightly amused, and thankfully didn't seem that offended.

"It is fine, child." She began softly, relaxed now that you stopped panicking. Her hands began to glow again, and you stared at them. "Do not worry, I am using healing magic. Please let me help."

After a pause, you nodded. The furry hands were now on your stomach, the glow that admitted from them felt reasonably pleasant. You couldn't describe it, but it was a soothing sort of feeling.

Your stomach felt better already.

"There, the cut should heal up in a week or so…" The monster smiled at you, and then looked surprised. "Oh my, where are my manners? My name is Toriel… what is yours, young one?"

"It's (y/n)… and thank you Toriel," You said with a small smile, feeling a little more relaxed around the woman. Toriel did seem very nice.

"What a lovely name," Toriel said, and her smile faltered a little. "(y/n)… would you mind telling me what left you in such a state? Papyrus wasn't much help… as he's quite distraught at the moment. I had to force him to get some rest."

"Papyrus?" You repeated, the name rolled off your tongue nicely. "Was that… who found me?"

"Yes, but he didn't tell me much…" Toriel said, and with a sad sigh continued. "He explained that he discovered other humans… attacking you?"

"That's the gist of it," You nodded, and seeing the pity in Toriel's eyes- you had to look away. You hated pity. "I'm fine though… uh don't worry about it. You've already done enough for me."

"Of course I will worry, it's in my nature…" Toriel said, you looked back to her to see a fierce glint in her eyes. "Those who attacked you should be punished… and I'm sure the human authorities would see to that?"

"Unlikely," You said bitterly, "They've never helped before… and it doesn't bother me to not report them… it's over now."

"I see," Toriel simply said, and there a brief silence settled over the two of you. There were many questions running through your head, and Toriel probably had some of her own.

You looked around the room, taking in the sight.

It was a cosy bedroom, the bed you sat upon was very cushiony and soft. The room was decorated in relaxing browns and creams, the rest of the furniture made out of a pine coloured wood. You couldn't help but let out a relaxed sigh, glad to be in such a comfortable room- much preferable to the streets.

"I thought I was going to die," You admitted after a moment, Toriel looking at you with some concern. You smiled despite the topic. "I think I wanted to… but for whatever reason I'm here."

"You have Papyrus to thank for that," Toriel said, looking worried at your words. It did sound bad when said aloud. "I'm not sure how you managed to stay alive while he brought you here, the state you were in… I was sure you were dead."

Toriel then coughed, visibly uncomfortable with the conversation.

"Now, that's all over and in the past…" Toriel stood. "Dinner will be ready soon, do you think you could eat?"

Thinking for a moment, you looked down to your stomach, it ached a little and not as nearly as painful as before. You did feel an emptiness inside, and the prospect of home cooked food made you salivate.

"I'll try," You shrugged, Toriel smiling happily to your answer.

"Good!" She said cheerily, "Having an appetite after that ordeal is a very good sign… I should check on the pie now, my child Frisk will be bringing you some clothes."

Toriel quickly left the room, not closing the door behind her completely. You could see slightly through the gap, and being the nosy person you were- you tried to look through.

You couldn't see much except the end of a cosy looking couch, and nobody else seemed to be in the house.

Lying back against the plump pillows, you let out a tired sigh. You decided to investigate yourself further, you noticed that you weren't wearing any clothes… but then again, the last you remember, they were torn apart by those thugs.

The quilt thankfully hid your private areas, but you couldn't help but feel insecure. Your body must've looked so weird to the monsters…

The door creaked.

Looking over in alarm, you see a young child. They were short, had brown hair and were wearing a pair of khakis and a striped jumper. They looked to be about ten.

"Uh… hi…?" You said, not expecting to another human in this what seemed to be a monster household. The little kid smiled at you kindly, and you noticed a bundle of clothes in their arms. They approached you, putting the bundle on the bed. It was only a simple pair of jeans and a t-shirt, but they looked like they could fit you.

"Those for me?" You asked, the kid nodding in response. "So… you must be Frisk? I'm (y/n)."

Frisk nodded, and made some motions with their hands… you realize they were signing.

"Oh… I'm sorry, I don't know sign language…" You felt bad, they seemed like a nice child and you felt like a disappointment in not knowing ASL. But Frisk just shrugged, not seeming offended in the slightest. "But thanks for the clothes… I'm going to get dressed now."

Frisk nodded, getting the hint and quickly leaving the room- and closing the door behind them.

Moving to sit on the edge of the bed, you hold back a groan- while your stomach was healed, it still ached a lot. You didn't dare risk standing up just yet, so with some awkward adjustment you were able to slip on the jeans, which thankfully fit. The baggy t-shirt came on easy, and closer inspection of it made you laugh a little, it was plain white except for some text that read ' _you've cat to kitten me_ '. You couldn't help but feel better already.

Now it was time to stand.

"Oh god…" You muttered, placing your feet on the soft carpet. You let the blood rush to them before attempting to stand, the last thing you needed is to fall face first. You slowly but surely stand, any quicker and you're sure you would pass out.

Now that you were standing, the next step was walking.

Your footsteps were very slow, and at a snail's pace you walked towards the bedroom door. After a couple minutes of balancing you finally reach the doorknob… taking a deep breath, you turn the handle. Not sure what to expect on the other side.

"Here goes nothing," You said to yourself, pushing the door open.

Luckily, the bedroom you were in was on the first floor- so you didn't have to navigate any stairs to get to the living room. The living room was very homely and nicely decorated, a large leather couch in the middle of the room, with a large TV placed in front of it. You couldn't help but admire the beautiful lamps and large fireplace, logs burning nicely inside.

Toriel had a very nice home.

Frisk waved happily from where they were sat, a colouring book and numerous pencils in front of him. You approached Frisk, and sat cross legged beside them- ignoring the ache in your stomach. They gestured to the book and offered you a crayon.

"Sure thing," You said with a shrug, taking a purple crayon. Frisk smiling happily to you as you coloured in a bird, it was actually kind of relaxing… and for a moment, you could forget all your problems.

You were unaware of anything else, Toriel came in at one point to check on the two of you. She simply smiled at the sight, sitting in her usual armchair with a book. It was a peaceful atmosphere, time passing quickly in the ambience.

You and Frisk were almost finished with the picture when a loud voice broke the peaceful silence.

"HUMAN!"

You let out a terrified squawk as unfamiliar arms lifted you into a tight hug, you could barely breathe. Looking up, you came face to face with a _skeleton_!?

"Ah Papyrus please put (y/n) down!" Toriel said worriedly, while you panicked internally. You stared at Papyrus with some fear, but the skeleton seemed friendly with his bright smile… he didn't seem to realize he was aggravating your stomach wound.

"C-can't… bre…athe…" You gasped out, and the tall skeleton promptly put you down. He seemed embarrassed but happy.

"APOLOGIES HUMAN," Papyrus said, and did seem genuinely guilty. You couldn't help but forgive him immediately, despite only meeting him. "I WAS VERY HAPPY TO SEE YOU AWAKE, BUT PERHAPS MY EXCITEMENT WAS TOO MUCH?"

"It was an honest mistake Papyrus," Toriel said kindly, and you nodded with a forgiving smile.

"Yeah… don't worry about it," You said with a small smile, looking Papyrus up and down.

He was a peculiar monster, and you couldn't help but take in the sight of him. Papyrus must have been at least 6ft- you had to look up slightly to face him. His cheekbones were defined and he had a bright smile, Papyrus seemed very friendly… and had quite an odd taste in clothes. He wore a yellow trimmed outfit, with blue shorts and matching red gloves and boots.

You supposed you couldn't judge, you didn't exactly have a 'fashionable' taste either.

"Now that is resolved, let's go have dinner shall we?" Toriel said with a smile, Papyrus and Frisk grinning and rushing into the kitchen. You watched them with an amused expression.

"Unfortunately Sans won't be joining us for dinner," Toriel added, leading you to the kitchen. "He will be working until late… but perhaps you've had enough excitement for today."

"Sans…?" You questioned as you both entered the kitchen, it was spacious and both Frisk and Papyrus were sat at the long dinner table in the middle of the room. The aromatic smell of cooked food assaulted your nose, and your stomach gurgled in anticipation- dinner smelled delicious.

"Papyrus' older brother," Toriel explained, and you nodded. You couldn't quite visualise what the older brother of Papyrus would look like, but you supposed you'd meet him at some point.

But…

"Um… when can I exactly leave?" You asked quietly, pulling out a chair to sit on- beside Papyrus and Frisk. You felt rude for asking, but you already felt as if you overstayed your welcome.

"LEAVE?" Papyrus repeated in confusion, "WHY WOULD YOU LEAVE, IS IT NOT COMFORTABLE FOR YOU HERE?"

"It is…" You said meekly, and you started to fidget with your hands. "But… I don't want to impose on you guys for much longer. It's not fair on you…"

A bowl of steamy soup was placed in front of you, along with some fresh bread rolls. You looked up to see Toriel smiling down at you, nonplussed at your words.

"Don't be silly, child." Toriel beamed. "You are not imposing, we are happy to help you while your recover. You might be eager to leave, but I would prefer it if you stayed for at least a week."

"I guess that a week would be okay…" You said in defeat- causing Toriel, Papyrus and Frisk to beam in delight. You didn't want to be a bother, but it seemed you didn't have a choice.

Not that you disliked them, but you never liked relying on people. It was a stubborn trait of yours.

"NYEH HEH HEH- DO NOT FEAR HUMAN, FOR I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS SHALL MAKE YOUR STAY FUN AND AMAZING, HOW CAN IT NOT BE WITH ME?" Papyrus laughed, and you couldn't help but smile at his words. Papyrus seemed so confident with himself, you slightly envied it.

You looked around the table, from Toriel to Papyrus and Frisk. They seemed like such a nice bunch, you felt bad for panicking earlier- despite what people told you, Monsters weren't as bad as you thought.

Hell, they were better than some humans you knew.

You quickly tucked into the soup, which had a distinct meaty and vegetable flavour. It was delicious, and you soon decimated the meal. You didn't realize how hungry you were until you started to eat.

You were tempted to lick your fingers, but you remembered your manners in time. This wasn't the streets anymore…

It was a home.

A home you secretly wished you had.

"I hope you enjoyed the meal, (y/n)," Toriel said with a smile, collecting the bowls and cutlery and carrying them to the sink.

"It was delicious," You nodded, still feeling a little bit hungry. As if reading your mind, Toriel came back with what smelled like cinnamon and butterscotch pie.

"INDEED, IT WAS DELICIOUS- ALMOST AS TASTY AS MY SPAGHETTI!" Papyrus added, Toriel chuckling as she dished out the pie. You barely held yourself back from tearing into the dessert.

The rest of the evening was spent eating pie and good conversation (which you mainly listened to rather than participate), the four of you relocated to the living room- and as it was getting late… Frisk eventually had to go to bed.

"GOODNIGHT HUMAN," Papyrus said, hugging the child. You watched with a smile, but your expression turned surprised when Frisk turned to wrap their arms around you. Hugging back, you couldn't help but feel emotional.

You barely knew these people, but they were already making a place in your heart.

"Night Frisk," You said, barely hiding your emotion. Frisk smiled up at you, before turning to Toriel who then took them upstairs. That left you and Papyrus on the couch, the tall skeleton watching a show on the TV with unwavering attention.

Curling up on the couch, you felt contented. It's been a while since you could sit comfortably and feel _safe_.

But you knew it wouldn't last, it never did.

You had years and years of experience with the orphanage, the constant rejection and loneliness stung deep in your heart. You would miss this place, this warmth.

"HUMAN?" Papyrus' voice broke through your dark thoughts. You looked to the skeleton, who was staring at you with concern. "ARE YOU QUITE ALRIGHT?"

"Um, yeah… sorry…" You forced yourself to smile. "…just daydreaming."

"IF YOU ARE SURE," Papyrus didn't seem convinced, and while the skeleton acted naïve- he seemed to be observant. "BUT I KNOW WHAT MIGHT CHEER YOU UP- PUZZLES!"

With a flourish, Papyrus brought out a box from underneath the coffee table. You looked at it in confusion, it seemed to be an assortment of different jigsaw puzzles.

You couldn't remember the last time you did a jigsaw puzzle, it might've been years.

"THE BEST THING ABOUT THE SURFACE IS THE SURPLUS OF PUZZLES!" Papyrus grinned, opening the box and emptying it on the table. "HUMANS SURE SEEM TO LOVE PUZZLES, MAYBE EVEN AS MUCH AS ME!"

"WOULD YOU LIKE TO HELP ME HUMAN?"

"It's (y/n)," You said, beginning to sort the puzzle pieces- starting with the outside pieces. "You can call me that, if you like. There are 7 billion humans on the earth… so maybe names would be better?"

"WOWIE," Papyrus gasped. "THERE'S 7 BILLION HUMANS...? WAIT… WHAT'S A BILLION?"

"Well, just think of the biggest number you can… and think much bigger," You said, trying to be helpful. You were confused as why Papyrus wouldn't understand the concept.

Questions began to arise in your head.

"There weren't many monsters in the Underground, then?" You asked, Papyrus' expression unchanging. You hoped you weren't being too intrusive. "What exactly… happened down there?"

"THERE'S A LOT OF US… BUT I DON'T THINK THERE'S AS MANY MONSTERS AS HUMANS!" Papyrus answered, beginning to put pieces of the puzzle together. While you sorted the outside bits, he began in the middle. "AND FRISK FREED US OF COURSE."

"Frisk… freed you?" You said in confusion, how could a ten year old single-handily free the monsters?

But then again, you didn't know much about the incident- you were on the streets running away from drug dealers and the police when it happened, after all.

"YES, THEY FELL INTO THE UNDERGOUND AND BEFRIENDED US ALL!" Papyrus explained happily. "THEY WENT TO THE KING AND… WELL I'M NOT TOO SURE WHAT HAPPENED AFTER THAT, BUT THE NEXT THING WE KNEW- THE BARRIER WAS BROKEN!"

"They sure are… special," You said, felt slightly envious. Frisk had achieved so much in their life already, while you were… well you. "Um… I think I have yet to thank you properly Papyrus."

"THANK ME PROPERLY?" Papyrus turned to you slightly, and you continued.

"I know it was you who found me… and basically saved my life," You said, a bitter laugh bubbling deep. "I don't know why you decided to do that, I was probably better off... well never mind that… ugh I'm so terrible at this stuff. Anyway, thank you. It will take me a while to pay you back, somehow-"

"PAY ME BACK?" Papyrus shook his head. "THERE'S NO NEED FOR THAT (y/n)! I AM HAPPY TO HELP ANYONE, AND TO LEAVE YOU IN THE SITUATION YOU WERE IN… THAT WOULD BE WRONG. THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS NEVER WRONG!"

"I suppose you're right," You chuckled.

"OF COURSE, I AM PAPYRUS! NYEH HEH HEH!"

You couldn't help but laugh, being around the cheerful skeleton was improving your mood. The two of you began to assemble the 10000 piece puzzle, and despite how exhausted you were- you were determined to get to know the skeleton monster, you enjoyed his presence greatly.

You've never been this happy before.

After a couple hours, Papyrus seemed to sense your tiredness- maybe it was obvious in your face.

"HUMAN- I MEAN (y/n)... IT IS GETTING QUITE LATE," Papyrus said. You jumped in the suddenness of his voice- as you were half asleep, your eye lids closing in exhaustion. "I ENJOY DOING THIS PUZZLE WITH YOU VERY MUCH, BUT YOU NEED YOUR REST!"

"I guess you're right…" You yawned, looking down at the large puzzle. It was halfway done, and you supposed it wouldn't hurt to continue it another day. You looked back to Papyrus who was smiling at you, and you smiled back- it was nice doing the puzzle with him.

"DO YOU NEED ASSISTANCE TO YOUR ROOM?" Papyrus asked, helping you stand. Your stomach barely ached and you weren't too tired that you couldn't walk. You shook your head.

"I'll be fine," You assured him, and walked towards your ( _temporary_ ) room. "Goodnight Papyrus."

"GOODNIGHT (y/n)!"

Shutting the door behind you, you let out a shaky sigh.

 _This is only temporary…_

 _You can't overstay your welcome…_

 _Don't get attached…_

These thoughts ran through your mind as you approached your **the** bed, you noticed another pile of clothes on the quilt- pyjamas you realized. Despite your angst-y thoughts, you smiled at the generosity. You knew you didn't deserve this kindness…

If only they knew what kind of person you are, the trouble you got into frequently… your addictions and negativity.

But you were determined to hide this bad side of you, at least for the week you were staying ( _tops_ ). You didn't want to traumatise poor Frisk, or disappoint Toriel… or make Papyrus realize you wasn't worth saving.

"You can do this…" You whispered to yourself, slipping on the silk pyjamas and crawling into bed. You roll into a semi-comfortable position while also trying not to lean on your injured stomach.

Closing your eyes, you could hear muffled voices from the living room. Instead of being disruptive, they were calming… and a reminder that this wasn't a dream, and that you really were safe and warm and-

 _Don't get used to it._

Despite how comfortable and exhausted you were, it took longer than it should've to fall asleep. Your usual negative thoughts kept you up, but eventually…

Everything went black.


	3. Introductions

**Author note-** I don't actually have a clear plot for this story, I do have some backstory and angst stuff and maybe some stuff planned but I really am winging it at the moment. I think the next few chapters will be quite fluffy/domestic/getting to know characters, but after that it will go quite dark and plotty… so be prepared! ;)

(Possible triggers- **anxiety attack, negative thoughts** )

-x-

 **Chapter three**

In the warmth of the quilt, you slowly awoke to sounds just outside the room. Toriel was bustling about, and you could hear Papyrus talking to Frisk joyfully while another deeper voice- one that you didn't recognise, joining in every now and again.

Rolling to the other side of the bed, you considered getting up. You didn't have the best night's sleep, but you didn't want to laze around any longer- the last thing you needed was to give Toriel and the others a bad impression.

Fighting your exhaustion, you manage to sit up. You felt like a mess, and all you could think of was having a nice shower, or even a bath. As you yawned, you could hear Frisk and Toriel leave the house- for school most likely, a place you've never had to go to for a long time.

Standing up, you shakily walked out of the bedroom into the living space. You noticed Papyrus bustling around in the kitchen, and a much smaller and stout skeleton was sat on the couch- napping, from the looks of it.

But the moment you walked into the threshold, his eyes opened and he looked at you with a curious expression. You couldn't help but gulp, there was something about the laid back looking skeleton that you couldn't put your finger on.

"hey kid, i'm sans… sans the skeleton… nice to meet'cha," Sans said with a wink, he seemed to have a constant grin on his face, his empty sockets alight with white pinpricks. His attire consisted of a blue hoodie, black baggy shorts and… pink slippers?

He seemed like a curious character, and you couldn't help but smile at his demeanour. You internally hit yourself for feeling fearful at first, you really needed to get over this 'scary monster' thing. It was becoming an issue, especially since you were surrounded by them.

"Hi, I'm (y/n)," You introduced yourself, and with how groggy you still felt- your voice came out like a tired croak.

San nodded languidly.

"yeah… tori told me all about you," Sans said, looking thoughtful. "uh, how's your stomach?"

"It's feeling better, thanks," You said with a nod, relieved to see the lack of pity in Sans eyes, or intrusive questioning. You really didn't need it right now.

"(y/n)!"

As much as you like Papyrus, the volume of his voice was not appropriate for the morning. You winced, turning to the tall skeleton with a grimaced smile. Your grumpy expression softened when you saw his bright smile.

"Uh… morning Papyrus," You greeted him tiredly, you really aren't a morning person, at all.

"TORIEL HAS TAKEN FRISK TO SCHOOL, AND WON'T BE BACK UNTIL LATER!" Papyrus began, unaware of your grogginess. You notice what he was wearing- an apron with text stating 'this is my _humerus_ apron' along with a chef hat. You smiled at the sight. "I WAS INSTRUCTED TO ENSURE YOU EAT PROPERLY AND HAVE LOTS OF REST, AND PROVIDE ANYTHING ELSE YOU MAY NEED."

"Oh, thanks," You said, and with a yawn you asked- "Would I able to have a shower or something?"

"OF COURSE!" Papyrus nodded with a smile, and your breath stuttered at his next words.

"DO YOU REQUIRE ASSISTANCE WITH THAT?"

You could hear Sans choke on laughter… and wonder how skeletons can choke anyway?

"whoa bro, I didn't expect you to have the _guts_ to say that."

"SANS!" Papyrus yelled, infuriated by his older brother's puns. Then the skeleton realized what he said to you.

You never knew skeletons could blush.

"Um…" Your face felt like it was on fire. "Thanks but I'm… uh fine-"

"OH NO, DO I SMELL BURNING?" Papyrus quickly ran into the kitchen, and nobody would point out that nothing smelt like it was burning.

"heh well that tickled _my funny bone_ … and third door on the right kiddo," Sans chuckled, as you started to walk up the stairs. You waved a thanks to the short skeleton, laughing to yourself at what just transpired. You could hear Papyrus yell at Sans for his pun, and you couldn't help but laugh again.

The two skelebrothers were certainly something.

Climbing the stairs wasn't as hard as you thought, the magic Toriel used to heal your wound worked really well- there were only a few aches now and again. Reaching the door to the bathroom, you walked inside the spacious and clean room. It was nicely tiled and in the corner was a large bath- with a shower attachment.

You decided you would have a nice bath, it's been months since you've had one- not that you haven't washed, but awfully cold showers or washing yourself by a local river probably didn't count.

After turning the hot tap on full blast, you looked around the bathroom again- finding a full body mirror in the corner.

You approached it with a grimace, glaring at your reflection.

While Toriel's magic masked the pain, your face looked horrendous. Your right eye was swelled and bruised badly, and cuts and marks littered your face. Cameron did a number on you.

"I'm going to fucking kill him…" You growled to yourself, feeling rage build up. The urge to throw the mirror was almost impossible to resist… but you remembered this wasn't your place to trash.

You were sure Toriel wouldn't appreciate it.

You took a deep breath to calm down, and lifted your pyjama shirt- examining the knife wound.

Removing the thin bandage that covered it, you winced- it looked bad, but you had a feeling it was worse before Toriel healed it up. It was a deep irritated red gash, and you had no doubt it would scar badly.

Hopefully it would be fine exposed to water.

You turned back to the bath, turning off the hot water- it was almost full, but you didn't mind. You were the sort of person to love the kind of bath that left you completely red from neck to toe.

Adding some bubble bath and a little bit of cold water, you mixed it until the water was the perfect temperature. You really missed this luxury.

When you slipped out of your clothes and into the bath, you couldn't resist sighing in delight. You let yourself relax for a little while, the water so hot but nice. It was as if it was scalding all the bad off you, and you felt like a new person.

Looking down, you noticed the water beginning to discolour- _gross_ , you thought. Despite your appearance, you really were hygienic, and that posed a problem when you were homeless with no regular access to clean water.

 _I really need to get a place of my own as soon as I can…_

 _…as if._

Not a lot of people hired homeless people with no talents whatsoever, and you were too stubborn to go to a hostel- those places were probably more dangerous than the streets anyway. So finding a secure and warm home soon with no money was seeming very unlikely.

You tried to ignore these thoughts, the last thing you needed was to depress yourself today.

After washing and conditioning your hair, you scrubbed yourself almost to the point of pain- you were determined to be squeaky clean. After 20 minutes of this, you were finally content.

You pulled the plug out.

Climbing out of the bath, you looked for a towel- luckily there was a large fluffy one on a rack. With the towel wrapped around your body, you let out a content hum.

After drying yourself completely, you realize you didn't bring any fresh clothes- not that you had any anyway. With an annoyed groan, you redressed back into your pyjamas. You could always change again in the bedroom.

Finding a hamper to put the used towel in, you then turned and walked out of the bathroom- your hair still slightly damp and skin still red. But you felt refreshed.

When you reached the bottom of the stairs, you gave Sans a smile which was returned- Papyrus was still bustling around in the kitchen. You quickly walk back to the guest bedroom, getting redressed in the clothes you wore yesterday.

That would become a problem.

But rather than dwelling on it, you shrugged and went to the living room again. Sans was asleep now, you didn't know how he could sleep at a time like this- a glance at the clock showed it was 10:35am. With a shrug you went to find Papyrus- luckily he was still in the kitchen, with how big the house was… you would probably get lost trying to find him elsewhere.

"OH HELLO AGAIN (y/n)!" Papyrus joyfully greeted you, he was mixing something in a bowl- and was covered in red sauce. The counter he was standing above was also splattered with the sauce, ingredients scattered around the kitchen.

You approached him with a curious expression, he had… eccentric ways of making breakfast.

"I MUST APOLOGISE FOR WHAT I SAID EARLIER-"

"No, no- it's fine really," You interrupted his rambling, sitting at the counter across from him- with a sheepish smile. "I know you didn't mean it in that way, and I uh, appreciate the sentiment anyway."

"What'cha cooking there?" You then asked, leaning on your forearms to take a closer look. Papyrus proudly showed you the contents- spaghetti noodles and what you assumed was a tomato and herb sauce.

"SPAGHETTI OF COURSE!" Papyrus said, and continued stirring the bowl vigorously. "THE BEST WAY TO START THE DAY!"

"It looks good," You said, not that you would know. You didn't know how to cook, except for making toast or heating things up. "I don't think I've had spaghetti in years-"

"WHAT!?"

Papyrus was so shocked he almost dropped the bowl, his eyes were wide as if you said something truly horrible.

"YOU HAVEN'T HAD SPAGHETTI… IN YEARS?"

"Yeah, what's the problem?" You asked, slightly amused and worried- the skeleton looked paler, if that was possible.

"THIS MUST BE FIXED- IMMEDIATELY!" Papyrus said, a determined glint in his eyes. He threw the mixture into the pan, and turned the stove on full blast. You could only watch in awe as he added herbs, spices, sauce and more noodles at an extremely fast rate- you could barely keep up with his movements.

A plate of steaming spaghetti was placed in front of you, cooked at a record time.

"BON APPETITE… OR AS MY BROTHER WOULD SAY- BONE APPETITE!" Papyrus said, looking extremely pleased with himself. "NYEH HEH HEH!"

"Uh… thanks Papyrus," You said, shaking your head with a small laugh. A fork was also placed in front of you, and you took it warily.

Papyrus was watching your every move, he waited for your reaction with bated breath.

You gulped, feeling pressure build in the room. Using the fork to scoop some noodles and sauce, you inch the fork closer to your mouth.

You paused briefly, but then took the plunge and swallowed the spaghetti.

 _Huh, this is pretty good._

Your eyes lightened up, scooping some more spaghetti to eat. You didn't know what you were expecting, but it tasted good. The noodles were maybe a little overcooked, but the sauce and seasoning was perfect… to you anyway.

"This is delicious Papyrus," You said with a nod to the skeleton, who seemed to deflate with relief.

"I AM GLAD YOU ENJOY THE GREAT PAPYRUS' SPAGHETTI, NOT THAT ANYONE WOULDN'T!" Papyrus said, beginning to clean up after himself, washing and putting everything away. "I WAS SO SHOCKED WHEN YOU TOLD ME HOW LONG AGO YOU ATE SPAGHETTI- BUT DO NOT WORRY, FOR I SHALL HAPPILY MAKE YOU SPAGHETTI EVERY DAY!"

"Every… day?" You asked, swallowing the next fork full heavily. While you enjoyed it immensely, you would struggle to eat it all the time. You liked variety.

"OR… WELL, WHENEVER YOU WANT REALLY." Papyrus shrugged, and you felt relieved. "I KNOW HOW YOU HUMANS ARE STRANGE WITH YOUR FOOD- HAVING TO HAVE SOMETHING DIFFERENT MOST DAYS."

"You're right about that," You chuckled, and with a few more savoured bites- the spaghetti was gone. You felt quite full and your appetite was sated, you had to reject Papyrus' offer of 'seconds'.

"I think if I eat any more, my stomach will burst!" You said, taking your plate to the sink. Hearing a shocked gasp, you turned to the skeleton with worry.

"BURST!?" Papyrus repeated, looking queasy. He grabbed your shoulders, tears in his eyes. "OH NO, THIS IS ALL MY FAULT- I SHOULD INFORM TORIEL IMMEDIATELY-"

"No, no- not like that!" You couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled within you. "It's a human expression, my stomach is fine, really!"

"OH…" Papyrus seemed sheepish, letting go of your shoulders. You missed the warmth of his hands, you patted his shoulder in comfort. "YOU HUMANS AND YOUR EXPRESSIONS, THEY CAN BE QUITE CONFUSING… AND WORRYING!"

"It's alright, even I get confused with some of them…" You shrugged, sitting back on a stool. You rubbed your stomach with a sigh.

"I wish I could cook like you… it'd make things easier, and tastier!" You grinned, and for the second time today- Papyrus looked shocked.

"YOU DON'T KNOW HOW TO COOK?" He gasped, and you nodded in apprehension. "THIS WILL NOT DO, I WILL ALSO FIX THIS PROBLEM!"

Papyrus grabbed you from the stool, and with a surprised yelp you followed him. The skeleton led you to a cupboard in the corner- bringing out a plain apron and handing it to you.

"Um… what…?" You said in confusion, slowly slipping the apron on and tying it at the back loosely. You turned to face Papyrus, slightly intimidated by the way he looked at you.

"(y/n)… PREPARE FOR THE GREATEST LESSON OF YOUR LIFE!"

* * *

When Toriel and Frisk returned from school, they came back to a… interesting sight. You were covered head to toe in sauce and noodles- and Papyrus wasn't faring off any better.

"GIVE NO MERCY TO THOSE TOMATOES!" Papyrus ordered you, an intense grin and look in his eyes.

"Are you sure this is how you make the sauce- because this seems really unnecessary!?" You asked, still punching the vegetables until they turned into a pate/sauce.

"THIS IS HOW UNDYNE TAUGHT ME AND SHE'S THE BEST COOK I KNOW- ASIDE FROM MYSELF OF COURSE!" Papyrus grinned, you couldn't help but smile back. Unbeknownst to Papyrus, punching the tomatoes was letting you release some pent up stress- the almost violent activity was very calming.

Cooking was fun!

"Ahem."

Toriel coughed to get your attention, causing you to stop punching the sauce and turn to her- both you and Papyrus looked alarmed. Toriel didn't seem that upset, but was looking at the mess with concern. Frisk was stood behind her, giggling to themselves.

"OH, HELLO TORIEL AND FRISK!"

"H-hey."

"Hello, I do hope you're going to clean up after yourselves?" Toriel asked with a smile, both you and Papyrus nodding quickly. With a hum of approval, Toriel turned to go back into the living room- Frisk running up to you two with a bright smile.

You began to wash your hands, getting the thick sauce off them.

"HOW WAS SCHOOL, LITTLE HUMAN?" Papyrus asked with a joyful smile, patting Frisk on the head- careful to not get any sauce on them.

Frisk made some motions with their hands, Papyrus nodded at every gesture. You couldn't understand any of it, but from the expression on Frisk's face- it seemed they had a good day.

Frisk then turned to you, flashing you a bright smile before helping you clean the kitchen. You couldn't help but feel bad, as the impromptu cooking lesson from Papyrus left the kitchen in quite a state. But with the combined effort of you, Frisk and Papyrus- the kitchen was once again spotless and clean.

"Uh… thanks Frisk," You then turned to Frisk, giving them a thankful smile. "But you didn't have to help."

Frisk shook their head, as if to say they didn't mind helping. You were unaware of how often messes happened in the kitchen with Papyrus, the younger child very much used to it.

Frisk hugged your legs before running off to the living room, and you were frozen for a moment. Not used to such affection, especially from someone you only just met yesterday. But you still smiled, Frisk's adorable behaviour practically melting your closed off heart.

Speaking of adorable behaviour…

"WELL (y/n), THAT CONCLUDES OUR LESSON I SUPPOSE!" Papyrus said joyfully, and you wondered how someone could smile so much. It wasn't a permanent grin like Sans, but Papyrus always seem so… happy. "I ENJOYED TEACHING YOU THE WAYS OF A MASTER CHEF LIKE ME, NYEH HEH HEH!"

Both you and Papyrus were stood facing each other, the pair of you covered with cooking sauce. As Papyrus looked down at with a happy expression, you felt an odd feeling emerge in your chest. You couldn't explain the feeling, but it was a positive one.

You couldn't honestly think of a time where you felt so happy, being around such friendly company and warmth was bittersweet. You enjoyed staying with the monsters… which for you, was an issue.

 _Don't get attached…_ you thought to yourself, still staring at Papyrus' smiling face.

 _…it might be too late for that._

"Uh… yeah… it was fun," You said quietly, Papyrus probably expecting an answer and it was true, the lesson was fun… but it reminded you of what you couldn't have.

A family.

"…ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Papyrus seemed to pick up on your mood, his happy expression turning to worry. You hated that you caused that change. "(y/n)… YOU SEEM SAD?"

"No… I'm fine Papyrus, really… I am," You lied, a fake smile on your face. Papyrus seemed thoughtful, it looked as if he could see right through you. You had to look away from his eyes, unable to lie directly to his face. "I'm just… tired. That's all."

"OH NO, IT'S MY FAULT ISN'T IT?" Papyrus said unhappily, and your chest tightened. You didn't mean to worry him. "I SHOULDN'T HAVE PUSHED YOU SO FAR TODAY WITH THE LESSON, YOU'RE STILL RECOVERING AND I SHOULD'VE BE MORE THOUGHTFUL-"

"I'm fine!" You snapped, and both you and Papyrus looked equally surprised. You didn't mean to be so rude, but the pain in your chest was getting too much. Unfortunately, you took it out on probably one of the few people who believed in you.

You refused to look at Papyrus, not wanting to see his disappointment.

"I… uh… I think I should go to bed…" You said shakily, and you rushed out of the kitchen into the living area. Your breathing was heavy and stuttered, it was becoming increasingly harder to think or feel.

You regretted it immediately, and you could feel three pairs of eyes stare at you in concern. Papyrus followed behind you, and in the fog of your mind you could hear his concerned voice.

"I-I'm fine…" Your voice sounded so far away, and your reassurance only worried them more.

You walked past Toriel towards the bedroom she so kindly provided for you, surprisingly steady considering how awful you felt.

 _It's been a while since one of these…_

You managed to make your way inside the room, closing the door behind yourself. Looking for a lock, you couldn't find one- so you made do with sitting against the door, your face resting on your knees as you sobbed quietly, chest painfully tight.

 _Get a grip… stop being so pathetic…_

You didn't even know the cause, whether it was Papyrus' unconditional friendliness which reminded you of what you couldn't have… or just you decided to be a bother to everyone and have a mental breakdown.

 _You couldn't even pretend to be sane for week…_

A more audible sob ripped its way from your throat, and you immediately felt weak. You didn't want to put this burden on them, you didn't want them to worry about you.

You were nothing.

"...(y/n)?"

You flinched, hearing Toriel's quiet but concerned voice through the door made you feel terrible. But you stayed quiet, unsure of whether you could speak at the moment.

"I would like to come in… to talk to you, please?"

You wiped a few stray tears from your eyes, unable to respond properly. There was a part of you that wanted Toriel to come in, comfort you… like a mother would. But the negative, horrible part of yourself wanted her to go away- to never try to treat you so warmly again.

Moving away from the door, you shakily stand. Your knees felt so weak, and you couldn't stop shaking like a leaf. It could be considered an achievement that you stood at all.

 _Pathetic..._

As if sensing you moved away from the door, Toriel opened it slowly. Looking at you with concern as she closed it behind her, you tried to hide your face- not wanting her to see your tears.

But it was in vain.

"Oh dear…" Toriel said quietly, and approached you warily. Feeling her arms wrap around you in a hug, you almost melted into a pathetic sniffling puddle. You held onto her tightly, burying your face into her shoulder. Despite your pride, you needed comfort desperately- even if you didn't think you deserved it.

"My child…" Toriel softly sighed, and you felt a hand run through your hair. You buried your head further into her shoulder, repressing a sob. "I would ask you what is wrong… but I feel that is not what you need right now."

You began to cry harder, letting all your emotions out- the sadness that was your life, the anger you felt towards your attackers and the hatred you felt… for yourself.

By the time your tears stopped falling, you felt empty. Your outburst taking everything out of you, but you preferred feeling numb over sad.

 _Was there a difference…?_

You finally pulled away from Toriel, rubbing your teary eyes while feeling a sense of embarrassment creep up on you. Toriel just gave you a patient smile, letting you gather your thoughts.

"I'm... s-sorry," Your voice came out shaky, but you wanted to apologise. You must have worried them so much over nothing, and you felt selfish for letting yourself make a scene.

"You do not have to apologise," Toriel said, and she sounded slightly stern. Her expression softened even more. "You've been through so much, child. Feeling overwhelmed is natural in this situation, but you do not have to hide your emotions from us. We only want to help."

You nodded, silently wishing you had a tissue. Physically and mentally, you were a mess. You gave Toriel a weak smile, feeling quite guilty for everything.

"I know…" You began, and the longer Toriel looked at you- the more you felt like revealing. "…that's why this is difficult…"

"I'm not… I'm not the greatest person," You began with a shuddered breath, and Toriel with consideration brought you a chair, which you sat back on it with a thankful half-smile. "I've done some stuff I'm not proud of and I… I'm really not worth all this hassle… and all I ever seem to do is push people away, even if they mean the best for me."

"I'm going to get us some tea," Toriel said after you quietened, and to your surprise she kissed the top of your head. The motherly affection nearly brought tears to your eyes, again. You watched as she left, and a few minutes later- came back with two steaming mugs.

You took the offered drink, blowing on the steam in contemplative thought.

"My child…" Toriel began quietly, and from the tone of her voice- she seemed upset. You looked to her with a worried frown.

"It saddens me to hear you speak of yourself that way, and that you truly believe you don't 'deserve' our help. I do not know what you've been through in your life, but if I had to take a guess… you don't have a home, do you not?"

You wanted to cry, but instead you nodded. Toriel's expression dropped even more.

"I feared that…" Toriel sighed sadly, staring into her own mug. "From the state you were in, and how recluse you seemed- I assumed that might be the case."

You wondered where Toriel was going with this, taking a sip of your still hot tea- you didn't care much for the taste, but you needed something warm inside you.

Toriel seemed to struggle with her words for a moment, you noticed the torn up expression she held.

"I suppose you would refuse, if I were to offer this room to you… for semi-permanent residence?"

You struggled to swallow for a moment, staring at Toriel with wide eyes. You opened your mouth to refuse the selfless offer, but the motherly monster beat you to it.

"(y/n), I know how badly you feel about yourself, and your actions…" Toriel sighed again. "But I want to help you get back on your feet, you do not have to live here permanently… just until you find a job and place of your own?"

You looked down, you knew the offer was sensible and that most people would take up on it. But the guilt you felt for being such a bother dragged you down, you so desperately wanted to accept- yet you felt like you didn't deserve this kind opportunity.

"I want you to consider it, at least." Toriel added, looking at you with sympathy- which made you slightly uncomfortable. "Please at least stay for a week, and then you can make a decision on our offer."

"...our?"

"Yes, everyone here enjoys your company- even only after a day of knowing you." Toriel smiled warmly. "Papyrus seems so happy to have a new friend, and the same could be said with Frisk."

"…even though I took my anger out on Papyrus?" You said quietly, your tone turning slightly bitter. You felt so guilty for snapping at the lovable skeleton, your already low self-worth was crumbling because of your behaviour.

"I can promise you he already forgives you for your outburst. Despite Sans' worries… Papyrus can handle it, he's capable of more than people give him credit for."

Toriel stood, placing her mug on the desk beside you. This was when you noticed the big carrier bag by her feet, you looked at with curiosity. Toriel picked it up and placed it on your bed.

"I brought you some clothes dear, so you have something clean to wear." Toriel explained, and she looked past your guilty expression. "These should last you for a little while, and please consider them a gift- and take them with you if you do decide to leave."

You supposed it wouldn't hurt to have something else to put on, considering the state of your t-shirt after Papyrus' impromptu lesson. The apron you wore really didn't do much to prevent the mess. You were also tired of wearing the same outfit, and the prospect of clean, new clothes did excite you.

"T-thank you," You said genuinely, letting Toriel hug you for the second time today.

"You are welcome child," Toriel said softly, pulling back with a smile. She went to pick up the nearly finished mugs, and sent you a reassuring look. "I will understand if you decide to stay in here this evening, but do not feel as if you're bothering us. Truly, you're not."

You nodded, watching with a slightly more positive look as Toriel left the room. Despite your stubborn need to look after yourself, you felt the urge to open up and accept the help offered. You knew your carefully constructed defences were being broken, leaving you feeling weak and open.

But… you didn't know if you cared enough to stop it.

Maybe you needed this...

.

.

.

A family.


	4. Protective

**Author note-**

I'm really sorry about the long wait, writers block coupled with college stress and general business made it hard to write… I'm not sure when the next chapter will be out, but thank you for your patience so far!

I hope this chapter makes it up to you!

Side note, I discovered this gem on Tumblr: - post/138030713095/sansybones-simonsoys-yesterday-was-super

That's basically my head canon for Papyrus' surface style… god damn why is the skele so attractive? :o

(Possible triggers- **threats** )

-x-

 **Chapter four**

You awoke with a start.

Sat up on the bed, you looked around the bedroom with tired eyes. You couldn't remember what woke you up, but for whatever reason- you were awake.

Glancing at the clock on the wall, which was slightly visible from the moonlight streaming through the curtain- you saw that it was 3:45am.

 _Ugh… why am I even awake?_

You were prepared to fall asleep again when a slight creak of a floorboard broke your thoughts, the sound came from just outside your door. Panic rose in your throat, and you couldn't help but be curious.

Quietly, you crept out of bed and began to inch towards the bedroom door. You told yourself that it was nothing, and that you were just being paranoid. But you needed to check, just in case.

Opening the door, you peeked your head around it warily. The living room was pitch black, aside from the only light source coming from the kitchen window. The moonlight casting a mysterious glow on the house.

 _It was nothing…_ you thought to yourself, feeling idiotic for even being a little bit scared. You decided that since you were up already, that you would grab a glass of water- your throat feeling quite dry.

Trudging along to the kitchen, you find a glass from a cupboard and fill it with water from the tap. You practically gulp the entire pint, feeling refreshed as the water fell down your throat.

You put the glass in the sink as quietly as you could, and turned to go back into the guest bedroom.

You had to muster all of your willpower not to scream, as Frisk was stood in the doorway- the child had given you a fright.

"Oh… crap…" You muttered to yourself, holding a hand to your chest. Frisk looked sheepish, and you noticed dark bags under their eyes. Your fright was replaced with concern.

"You alright there buddy?" You asked them, as quietly as you could. The child tried to nod, but immediately broke down in tears instead. The sudden outburst shocked you, leaving you unable to react for a moment.

"Uh… oh…" You were at loss of what to say, so you approached Frisk instead. Leaning down to give them a hug, they immediately clung to you.

Feeling your inner big sister come out, you pick the child up with ease. You carry them to the living room so you can both sit down, and as you sit- Frisk continued holding onto you while sniffling.

"Do you want me to get your mom…?" You whispered, rubbing the child's back in an attempt to comfort them. Frisk paused for a moment, but shook their head slowly.

You wasn't sure how to go about this, it's been so long since you've had to comfort a child. But you wanted to know what was upsetting Frisk, you already felt so protective over them and wanted to get to the bottom of the problem.

"I would ask if you wanted to talk about it… but I'm useless at that sign language…" You sighed. Frisk perked up a little, reaching around you to grab a drawing pad that was left on the coffee table. They managed to find a pen nearby and began scribbling on the paper.

You waited patiently, silently wishing you knew sign language. You felt so disrespectful for not knowing, and for Frisk having to make an extra effort to communicate to you.

Frisk showed you a note, it simply said:

 _I had a nightmare._

The writing was messy, and you noticed how much Frisk was shaking. You felt the need to hug them again, and you did so.

"I'm sorry to hear that bud…" You said quietly, understanding the child's pain. You weren't a stranger to bad dreams. "…what was it about? Um… it might help to talk about it, that's if you wanted to?"

Frisk nodded, and began scribbling again. Reading the note, it said:

 _It was about a strange man, he was tall and dark and he was speaking weirdly. There was this other child who looked like me, but they weren't me at all. You were in my dream too, and so were the rest of my family._

"I was in the dream?" You repeated, Frisk looking down sadly. You gulped a little. "…what happened next?"

… _everyone died._

These words were written so shakily, that it was almost impossible to read them. You looked up to Frisk, who was at the point of tears again. You hugged them tightly, feeling quite sorry for the child- they must have been through a lot to have dreams like those.

You didn't want to pry any further, worried you would upset them too much. Instead you gave Frisk a reassuring smile, an idea popping into your head.

"Say Frisk… does your mom buy milk?" You asked, Frisk nodding in response. Your smile brightens a little. "I got the perfect idea, I'll be back in a minute, okay?"

You crept silently back to the kitchen, looking around. You easily found the tall fridge, opening it and grabbing the already open milk carton… while noticing the large surplus of milk cartons, leftover spaghetti, pie and… snails?

With a bemused shake of your head, you close the fridge door slowly, careful to not make any sound. You find a mug in one of the overhead cupboards, as well as a cooking pot. Turning the clean stove on, you pour the milk into the pot and put it on the heat.

It would only take a few minutes to warm up.

You returned to Frisk with a mug of warm milk, passing it to the child who took it with a thankful smile. They nursed the soothing drink while you sat next to them, and with minimal effort you managed to find a thin blanket on the couch- which you wrapped around them.

 _Thank you…_ Frisk mouthed, seeming to be cheered up- even if just a little.

"No worries," You said quietly, smiling down at them. "…I'm really sorry that you had such a horrible dream Frisk… but you should know that won't happen, those sorts of things are just our minds messing with us. Making us fear the unknown, when we should be focusing on the present."

Frisk nodded in agreement, and they placed their mug on the table- grabbing the notepad to scribble something down. When they passed it to you, with hopeful eyes filled with tears- you looked at the message with an equally teary expression.

 _Please stay with us._

"Frisk…" You whispered, your voice coming out very weak. Frisk wrote more on the paper, giving you a reassuring smile.

You stared at the message with shock.

 _You're super cool, and everyone you met so far really likes you. You shouldn't be so sad all the time, with us you could be happy. I'll help you when you're feeling sad, like you helped me just now._

 _You don't have to be alone._

It seemed that they were the one comforting you now.

"Uh… wow…" You gasped out, the dam that were your tear ducts broke. You couldn't stop the flow of tears from falling, and you felt so incredibly weak for crying for the second time within 24 hours. "I… don't really know what to say…"

Frisk nodded in understanding, snuggling up to you with their warm milk in hand. You noticed them becoming more tired as the minutes ticked by, the drink doing its trick of relaxing them to the point of sleep.

"Hey… maybe you should go back up to bed?" You suggested with a sniffle, Frisk yawning in response. You smiled at each other, Frisk standing and tugging you along with them.

You followed without complaint, letting the child lead you to their bedroom so you could tuck them in. Frisk looked content as you tucked the thick duvet over them, and you smiled at the sight.

"Goodnight Frisk," You whispered, the child already fast asleep. Without thinking much about it, you kissed the top of their head… embracing the sisterly affection you felt for the kid.

"…thank you."

-x-

You managed to go back to bed, sleeping for a few more hours- before the busy hustle and bustle of the morning woke you up again. The voices outside your room were too loud to ignore, so you accepted your fate.

"Ugh…" You groaned from underneath the duvet, feeling so exhausted. It was the kind of tiredness that would stick with you until you went back to bed later tonight.

 _Going to be one of those days then…_

Eventually and with a groan, you pulled yourself out of bed.

Finding the bag of clothes Toriel gifted to you, you searched through the selection while feeling quite bad for the large amount of clothes that were inside.

You hoped it didn't cost Toriel much… or anything really.

After a minute of searching, you found a cute tank top and sweatpants, as well as some fresh underwear. You slipped the outfit on, admiring the 'very casual yet cute' look of the composition. It was nice wearing new and clean clothes for once… you could already feel your little confidence grow.

A knock on the door interrupted your thoughts, and it opened the door a moment later, Toriel peeking her head around it.

"Oh good morning (y/n)," Toriel said with a warm smile, which you managed to mirror. "I was just checking up on you, to see if you're feeling any better…?"

"Yeah, I'm okay now." You said, and it wasn't exactly a lie as you felt quite positive at the moment. If you had to guess, it was probably Frisk's message to you last night. Knowing how much the kid wanted you to stay made you feel… happy.

You hoped it would last.

"I'm glad to hear that," Toriel's smile brightened, seeming relieved at your words. "Well (y/n), I have to take Frisk to school and I will not be back until later this evening. Please do make yourself at home, I've left some pie for you in the fridge and we will see you later."

You nodded, and went to follow Toriel to see her out. Frisk was waiting by the front door with a backpack, and you ruffled their hair with a smile- which was returned.

Toriel then gave you a warm hug, which you accepted with a sheepish look.

"See you later," You said simply, waving as Toriel and Frisk left. Closing the door behind them, you turned to face an empty living room.

You wondered where Sans and Papyrus were, you couldn't hear the taller skeleton's booming voice… so you assumed that he wasn't here at least.

 _I hope I didn't upset him…_ You thought sadly and despite Toriel's assurance, you still felt horrible for how you spoke to him.

You made a mental note to apologise the next time you saw him… which was hopefully today.

With one last glance of the empty living area, you decided you would have another wash… especially after yesterday's cooking shenanigans. You could still feel the marina sauce splattered on your skin- you couldn't help but feel embarrassed for not washing it off sooner.

 _Stupid anxiety…_

You began your ascent on the stairs, heading for the bathroom. Once you were inside, it didn't take any longer than five minutes to undress, step into the bath and run the shower head.

You spent around five more minutes washing yourself, letting the water run over your body with a sigh. But you didn't want to waste any more water by dosing off, so you stepped out and grabbed a fluffy off the rack to dry yourself with.

You felt refreshed, you hoped your appearance reflected that.

Approaching the mirror in the corner, you inspected yourself again. The swelling on your face had gone down a little, the bruises fading slightly. A glance to your stomach allowed you inspect your sore but healing knife wound, it looked better than yesterday.

You were healing, gradually.

Taking a deep breath, you smiled at your reflection- which was hard considering the deep hate you had for yourself.

But you had to be strong…

… _for Frisk…_

 _...for Toriel…_

 _...for Papyrus…_

Just thinking of them brought a genuine smile to your face, you felt so fortunate to have met such generous and nice people. While the usual negative thoughts tried to make you doubt your worth, you knew you could rely on these strangers.

… _strangers?_

You shook your head at the thought, they weren't strangers anymore… which was impressive considering your issues with trust.

Realizing that you were staring dumbly at your reflection while in deep thought, you decided to go do… something. You weren't 100% comfortable to make yourself at home, so you considered just sitting in the living room until Toriel and Frisk returned.

With that in mind, you quickly redressed and left the bathroom. You made it halfway down the stairs when you noticed Sans sat on the sofa, the skeleton's eye sockets were closed- but they opened as soon as you reached the bottom of the stairwell.

His expression was… off-putting.

You gulped.

"Good morning," You said, your voice coming out quiet and timid. Sans seemed to notice this, and patted the seat next to him, still wearing that permanent grin of his.

"what's with the weird tone, kid?" Sans said, and you couldn't help but notice his smile held an edge to it. It was strange. "come sit."

You approached the sofa with some reservation, your gut instinct telling you to escape somehow. But you had an inkling of why Sans would be making you feel that way, it was probably to do with your behaviour yesterday.

You sat next to the skeleton, looking at the carpet with a frown. Your anxiety was pretty bad, so even before he has said anything- your thoughts were going wild.

"look…"

 _Oh god…_

"I'm not sure what you've been through in your life, kid…" Sans began, and at his words you glanced up at him. He was looking away anyway, his gaze directed towards the turned off TV. "…but yesterday, you kinda blew up on us, well… on my brother mainly."

You couldn't help but gulp again, unsure of where Sans was going with this. He still wasn't looking at you, and that unnerved you.

"…heh, I do like you kid, you seem okay… better than some of the other humans out there." Sans admitted, his eye sockets now closed. "…but I don't like seeing my bro hurt, y'know?"

"I-I know… I'm… really s-sorry about that," You stuttered quietly, your hands clenched in response to the fear. "I really didn't mean to, I… I do feel so horrible for that…"

"heh, glad to see you have some remorse (y/n)," Sans said, and then he looked at you.

Your heart stopped at his gaze, the sockets that usually held light pinpricks were empty- it was as if he was staring into your soul. The air around you felt uncomfortable, it was becoming hard to breathe.

"…cause' if you hurt my brother again-"

"SANS!"

The rather intense moment was interrupted by Papyrus, the skeleton kicking down the front door- carrying various brown paper bags in his arms. He didn't seem to notice what he interrupted, and instead trudged through the door with an oblivious grin.

You've never been so thankful for an interruption in your life.

"Papyrus!" You called out in greeting, a relieved smile breaking out on your face. The tall skeleton seemed shocked at first at your joyful presence, but his look of surprise turned into happiness.

You hopped off the sofa, practically attacking the skeleton with a hug. Your sudden bold move surprised everyone, even yourself, but you were so happy to see Papyrus- mainly because he saved you from a fate worse than death…

…the overprotective sibling talk.

"OH HELLO (y/n)!" Papyrus said, returning the hug without hesitation. You looked up to him with a sheepish smile, but you decided to enjoy the surprisingly warm hug while it lasted. "I'M SO GLAD TO SEE YOU'RE OKAY… I WAS… WORRIED ABOUT YOU."

Hearing that, you let go of Papyrus and stepped back. Already feeling the guilt build up, you looked to the carpet again.

"I'm really sorry about yesterday, Papyrus." You admitted aloud, and your anxious worries of Papyrus not accepting your apology were disproven immediately - as the skeleton swept you up into another bone crushing hug.

You didn't have the heart to fight it.

"NYEH HEH HEH, DO NOT FRET ABOUT THAT!" Papyrus grinned. "THE GREAT PAPYRUS ALREADY FORGAVE YOU!"

Tears welled up in your eyes, but you fought them valiantly. You couldn't believe your luck, usually people took your bursts of anger personally- but Papyrus was so forgiving, so goddamn nice. It seemed no matter what you did, Papyrus would always forgive you.

"T-thank you." You said, and meant it.

"heh, _tibia_ honest guys, this is a touching moment… it sends a chill down my _spine_."

Sans' joking voice spoke up, breaking your train of thought. With a quick glance in his direction, you saw his expression had returned to normal.

Before you could say anything, Papyrus yelled out.

"SANS, WILL YOU STOP WITH YOUR INCESSANT PUNS!?" Papyrus huffed, hands on his hips. You couldn't help but think he looked… cute, all riled up.

"no need to _skull_ k bro, I know my _skele-ton_ of puns _rattle your bones_ but-"

"STOP!"

You looked between the two brothers with a small bemused smile, still somewhat shaken from Sans' earlier threat. But you were glad the situation wasn't as intense as it was before.

It seemed from his reactions to his brother's jokes that Papyrus didn't like puns all that much, while you didn't mind them- although the very cheesy ones did make you want to groan. You liked seeing Papyrus' reactions to them.

You were starting to think you were obsessed with the skeleton.

While you've only known Papyrus for a very short time, everything about him was so… interesting. His amazing personality, his odd yet endearing looks, and the way he treated you with so much unconditional kindness.

You couldn't stop thinking about that, and the way it made you feel.

"heh… I'll leave you two to it, I have work in five minutes anyway," Sans said nonchalantly, taking his time to stand up. You were curious, wondering how he would travel to work in such a short time… unless it was only around the corner.

Maybe he just arrives late to his shifts, it seemed like something the chilled out skeleton would do.

"DO YOU NEED A LIFT, BROTHER?" Papyrus offered, Sans shaking his head in response.

"nah, don't sweat it bro… I have my shortcuts." With that vague answer, Sans went upstairs.

You couldn't help but wonder how he would get to work by going that way, but Papyrus didn't seem that worried so you cast that thought away.

You probably shouldn't question someone like Sans anyway… there was something about him you couldn't put your finger on.

"ARE YOU SURE YOU'RE ALRIGHT (y/n)?" Papyrus' concerned tone captured your attention, your gaze snapping back to the skeleton. "…YOU SEEM RATHER… PALE?

Papyrus reached to feel your forehead, seeming so worried for your health. His caring attitude left a strange feeling in your stomach, you had to swallow heavily before answering.

"I'm okay," You lied with a small smile, deciding not to mention Sans' threat. "…just still recovering."

You understood the protectiveness and didn't blame Sans for it really, Papyrus was so unconditionally kind and innocent. There would be people who would readily take advantage of him, you knew from first-hand experience how terrible humans could be.

That thought alone made you want to protect the monster.

If there was one thing that needed to be constant in this world, it would have to be Papyrus' childlike view of the world. While there was a part of you that envied that, you knew it was too late for you.

You wouldn't let anyone ruin him, even yourself.

"WELL, I HAVE SOME GREAT NEWS!" Papyrus said, jolting you out of your musings. You flushed a little, hoping it wasn't obvious you were lost in thought.

"…news?" You repeated, feeling a sense of curiosity arise. Papyrus grinned in response, gathering his groceries and bounding into the kitchen. You followed without hesitation.

"MY VERY GOOD FRIEND UNDYNE IS COMING OVER FOR A SLEEPOVER!"

-X-


	5. Bonding

**Authors note**

Hey guys, here's the next chapter for y'all!

I received a review on the last chapter (yay) which was very nice, however it mentioned to not write Papyrus as mature, or at least try not to. Which is true, the essence of Papyrus is the fact he's quite… oblivious to most things.

However, I just wanted to let you guys know that my portrayal of characters might differ from you! (Which is fine!)

I always try to keep the essence of the character, while developing them along with the story.

So… some events later on in this fic might require certain characters to accept reality, or "mature" a little bit. ;)

That's all I'm going to say… enjoy the chapter!

(Possible triggers- general anxiety and self hate)

-x-

 **Chapter Five**

Papyrus was visibly giddy the entire time you two waited for Undyne's appearance, the both of you were sat in the living area after putting the groceries away, while the skeleton spoke about his best friend, almost non-stop.

From what you gathered from his nearly incoherent ramblings, Undyne was a "very cool" monster lady who helped train Papyrus in the Underground, when they were trapped down there… with cooking lessons apparently, and at the time she was the Captain of King Asgore's Royal Guard.

From the way Papyrus was talking about her, it seemed he really liked her.

That thought alone had left an unsettling feeling in your stomach, one you couldn't explain… and one you felt guilty for even experiencing.

So you didn't quite know what to expect, when the front door flew open forcefully- the second time in just a day.

"Hey Papyrus!"

Undyne was… loud, not as nearly as loud as Papyrus- but a close contender.

As she entered through the doorway, you tried not to stare so obviously.

She was tall, nearing 7ft from the looks of it, and had bright blue skin scattered with scales and scars. Her only visible eye was yellow, the other covered with a black eye patch. Her overall appearance reminded you of an axolotl mixed with a shark, especially with the sharp teeth that were on display as she grinned.

You couldn't help but admire her long red hair, which was tied up into a ponytail.

"HELLO UNDYNE!"

Papyrus quickly got up from the sofa- practically bounding towards Undyne with a grin. The two exchanged a friendly bone-crushing hug, causing you to look away with a frown.

"I brought Alphie along for the sleepover Paps, she finally got a few days off from the lab and I wasn't going to leave my girlfriend behind!" Undyne said, then glanced behind her.

This was when you noticed the much shorter monster, trailing behind Undyne. She looked like a strange mix of a lizard… and was very dinosaur like. She wore glasses and seemed to be very shy, if you read her uncertain smile correctly.

You couldn't help but quirk a smile at her attire, her cute pink t-shirt sporting a cartoon girl with cat ears. You didn't recognise it, but then again you didn't watch much TV.

Relief swept through you at the realization that Undyne and Alphys were a couple… but confusion replaced that emotion.

 _Why would I care if Papyrus' best friend was taken or not…?_

"OF COURSE UNDYNE, THE MORE THE MERRIER NYEH HEH!" Papyrus' booming voice brought you out of your thoughts, and you looked away from the two new monsters- not wanting to be caught staring.

This was when Undyne noticed you.

"So who's your new friend, Papyrus?" Undyne had asked, the look she directed towards you was a mix of curiosity and bemusement. The monster behind her, Alphys- sent you a small smile.

You returned it shyly.

"OH, WHERE ARE MY MANNERS… THIS IS (y/n)!"

Papyrus practically dragged you towards Undyne, the fish monster not hesitating to offer a hand to shake. You took it, and tried not to be overly disturbed and react from the scaly fins you could feel in your grasp.

Undyne's grip on your hand was rather tight, nearing the point of pain.

You barely kept in the sigh of relief when she let go.

"H-hello," You said quietly, with a small smile, trying not to show your nerves. You aren't the most confident with new people, but usually your nervousness went after a while.

You hoped.

"Nice to meet cha' (y/n)," Undyne said, smiling toothily. She seemed friendly enough, if not a little robust, so you relaxed a little bit.

"Uh… same," You replied awkwardly, fidgeting slightly. Undyne turned her attention back to Papyrus, not seeming at all perturbed by your shyness.

Sans' behaviour earlier had certainly made you feel on edge.

"…hah, guess what Papyrus?" Undyne then chuckled, her smirk turning ominous.

"…WHAT'S THAT UNDYNE?"

"Me and Alphys are totally gonna kick you and (y/n)'s asses at Brawl!" Undyne taunted, and you blanched at her words.

 _..brawl?_

"DON'T COUNT ON IT MY FRIEND… IT IS MORE LIKELY WE WILL DECIMATE YOU TWO! NYEH HEH HEH!"

Papyrus and Undyne stared down each other, both smirking confidently. Both you and Alphys shared a look of dismay.

… _Oh no._

* * *

Sat back on the sofa, with an unfamiliar controller in your hand. You watched as Undyne and Papyrus tried to set up the Wii U… at least that's what you thought it was called.

Alphys was sat next to you, waiting patiently. She seemed very quiet, but you didn't mind that.

She seemed to be the polar opposite of Undyne… maybe opposites did attract after all?

"Um… h-hi," Alphys eventually spoke up, noticing your glances towards her. You looked away with a sheepish smile, silently berating yourself for staring. It was rude.

"Hey, it's Alphys right?" You said with a smile, trying to be reassuring. It worked, well you thought it did- as Alphys smiled back.

"Y-yeah… um sorry about Undyne and Papyrus b-by the way," Alphys said, with a nervous chuckle. "…t-they're pretty intense when it comes to video games… or anything really."

"I noticed," You said with a laugh, your gaze turning to Papyrus and Undyne- who both seemed to be battling the tangled wires around the TV. It seemed they were losing at the moment. "…but you can't help but love that about them."

"L-love?" Alphys repeated, her tone turning curious. You flushed slightly as you realized your words. "…a-are you and Papyrus-"

"No, no not at all!" You said in a rush, perhaps you said it too quickly- as Alphys didn't looked convinced in the slightest. "…I like him a lot… but as a friend, y'know?"

"Y-yeah, sure…" Alphys nodded, but you knew she didn't believe you. You looked away with a slight frown.

You didn't know exactly how you felt about Papyrus, but you knew the skeleton you met only a few days ago had left a deep imprint on you. You enjoyed his company immensely, even despite your adversity to the thought of opening up, to anyone. Heck, the thought that he might have liked Undyne more than a friend had made you jealous.

Just being around the lovable skeleton had changed you so much in such little time… you felt more open, comfortable and trusting than you have ever been in your life.

…it was very dangerous territory.

"NGAAAAAH!"

Undyne's furious shout brought you suddenly out of your thoughts, both you and Alphys stared with wide eyes as Undyne managed to somehow split a wire in half, in her struggle to untangle them.

"…um… oops?" Undyne said sheepishly.

"U-undyne!" Alphys spluttered, quite loudly considering her shyness. She got up from the sofa, looking at Undyne with a slightly stern expression. "T-toriel won't be happy if you keep b-breaking her stuff!"

"Sorry, babe…" Undyne apologised with guilty expression, scratching the back of her head and still holding the broken wire. "But… you can fix it, right?"

"Y-yeah… but no more breaking stuff, promise?" Alphys said, and to your surprise, she sounded quite assertive. She even turned to Papyrus. "Y-you too Papyrus!"

"Promise," Undyne nodded with a wink, leaning down to kiss Alphys on the forehead, eliciting a bright blush from the shorter monster. Papyrus also nodded ferociously.

"WHY OF COURSE DR. ALPHYS!" Papyrus spoke, his grin suddenly turning sombre.

"…BUT I CANNOT PROMISE THAT I WON'T BREAK BOTH YOUR AND UNDYNE'S HEART WHEN ME AND (y/n) DEFEAT YOU AT BRAWL! NYEH HEH HEH!"

"…oh it is on Papyrus!" Undyne retorted with a smirk, pumping her fist into the air determinedly. Alphys shook her head while tinkering with the wire, looking quite bemused.

After Papyrus and Undyne exchanged some more challenging words, and the broken wire was repaired by Alphys, you realized something.

"Um… I don't actually know how to play this game," You pointed out, not having much experience with videogames. Although they looked like lots of fun.

Papyrus looked completely shocked at this, and you couldn't help but feel like you've disappointed him somehow. But the skeleton regained his surprise, and practically jumped into the seat next to you, looking oddly gleeful.

"NO WORRIES MY DEAR (y/n), WITH THE GREAT PAPYRUS' GUIDANCE YOU SHALL BECOME THE GREATEST BRAWLER THERE EVER WAS!" Papyrus said, looking very confident of that statement. You wasn't so sure, but you certainly wasn't going to burst the happy skeleton's bubble.

"Doubt it," Undyne said teasingly, both her and Alphys sitting next to you two on the couch. "We're gonna beat you so hard you'll be begging for mercy… fuhuhu… isn't that right Alphie!?"

"Y-yeah!" Alphys nodded with a smile, more confident than before. With a glance to the TV, you noticed the title of the game come up, and with a few clicks of a button from Alphys, you were on the character select screen.

There were so many to choose from, and you only recognized a few characters (who didn't know Mario?) before you could make a decision, Papyrus pointed to your controller.

"TO USE THIS ON THE CHARACTER SELECTION SCREEN, JUST POINT AT THE CHARACTER WITH THE CONTROLLER AND PRESS THAT BUTTON," Papyrus explained, and gestured to the specific button. You nodded, trying to get used to the control- it was weird trying to point it in the right way and getting the console respond to it.

But you quickly got the hang of it.

While the others had made their choices quite quickly (Undyne had chosen Samus, Alphys picked Pikachu and Papyrus chose Meta Knight) you were still undecided.

After a short moment, you picked a character called Link. He looked quite cool, and you supposed you could change character in-between rounds if you were still uncertain of your choice.

While Undyne picked a level for the battle, Papyrus tried to teach you the controls. The skeleton was sat quite close, his arm brushing against yours as he pointed at the buttons and explained them with a smile.

You found it hard to concentrate, hoping your blush wasn't obvious.

"…what?" You breathed out, realizing Papyrus was staring at you.

"…DID I NOT EXPLAIN IT VERY WELL?" Papyrus said with a slight frown, as if disappointed in himself. "LET ME TRY AGAIN, THESE TWO BUTTONS ARE YOUR MAIN ATTACKS- PRESSING THEM IN DIFFERENT ORDERS WILL CAUSE DIFFERENT MOVES. COMBOS IF YOU WILL. USE THE ANALOG STICK TO MOVE YOUR CHARACTER, AND THIS BUTTON HERE WILL MAKE YOU JUMP-"

"Oh come on, let's just play already!" Undyne interrupted, seeming angsty to continue the game.

You gave Papyrus a reassuring smile.

"Yeah… I think I understand now Papyrus so thank you," You nodded, and it wasn't entirely a lie. You were confused with some of the explanation, but you got the gist of it.

You hoped you would catch on during the game.

"WELL, OKAY THEN!" Papyrus said, and his gaze turned towards the screen. His next words were taunting yet joyful. "…LET'S GET ON WITH THE BUTT-KICKING NYEH HEH HEH!"

With that, the match began and you braced yourself.

The three monsters seemed well versed in the game, the moment the match began they all moved their characters so fluently while attacking each other… while you moved around quite uncertainly.

Within a minute, Undyne had managed an impressive combo which resulted in both yours and Papyrus' character being flung off the side of the arena.

"Take that!" Undyne shouted with a grin, looking very smug.

"NYEH… DON'T GET OVERCONFIDENT UNDYNE!" Papyrus had retorted, leaning forward with a concentrated expression. It seemed like he meant business.

When the two of you reappeared on the map, Papyrus immediately honed in on Undyne's character- the two battling it out quite valiantly. You moved your character towards Alphys', and began your attack.

Alphys decimated you within a minute, it seemed Pikachu packed quite the "zap".

"…damn," You swore under your breath, becoming quite frustrated. You didn't expect to be any good at the game on your first match, but you felt a need to prove yourself.

However, as you were beginning to lose hope, a pulsing ball appeared on the arena. Undyne and Papyrus gasped excitedly at the sight, and everyone moved their characters towards it.

Undyne had managed to hit the glowing ball, causing it to float towards your character. You understood the gist of the item, and made your character swing at it. The attack connected, causing the ball to shatter and envelope Link in a glow.

"(y/n) QUICKLY, PRESS THAT BUTTON!" Papyrus yelled out excitedly, gesturing to a button on your controller. You were quite close to Undyne's character, so you nodded and pressed the button, hoping for the best.

Undyne's was unable to get away, her character immediately enveloped in a golden glowing triforce. You watched with some growing glee as your character mercilessly swiped at her, and on the last swing Samus was flung out of the arena.

You beamed, quite proud of your accomplishment.

"Ha, looks like someone got bested by the newbie!" You pointed out tauntingly, exchanging a teasing look with Undyne. You didn't expect to be so confident with her already… but it seemed video games did wonders for bonding.

"WELL DONE (y/n)!"

You glanced over to Papyrus at his words, the skeleton was beaming at you with a proud smile.

Strangely enough, you could feel your cheeks heat up. You quickly looked back to the TV, to find Undyne had already killed you during your distraction. You weren't that upset, still pondering your reaction to Papyrus.

"Fuhuhu… not so cocky now huh?" Undyne chuckled, with a challenging smirk. You shook yourself out of your stupor, and sent her an equally challenging expression.

It was on.

You were getting better and better at the game as you played, your confidence rising with each kill.

By the time the match ended, it wasn't clear which team won.

The four of you waited with baited breath, as the screen revealed the winners.

 **BLUE TEAM WINS!**

Flashed across the TV, and Papyrus let out a cheerful shout in response. You glanced at him with a smile, and nearly squeaked aloud when he enveloped you in a bone crushing hug.

"YES WE DID IT! BUT I'M NOT SURPRISED!" Papyrus said giddily, still hugging you. While you usually avoided contact with people if possible, the hug was… really nice. "WITH SUCH A GREAT PLAYER LIKE ME, WE WERE BOUND TO WIN NYEH HEH!"

"Alright, alright… you can stop gloating now bonehead!" Undyne interrupted gruffly, leaning over you to noogie Papyrus. He had to let go of you as he inched away with a laugh, you couldn't help but feel disheartened at that.

After the excitement of winning the match died down, the four of you kept playing for another hour. It was after seven more matches, four of which you won- that you needed a break.

"Um… I'm just going to the bathroom, I'll be back in a sec," You said before another match could be started, you received nods from the others.

You quickly made your way up the stairs, and into the bathroom.

It only took you a few minutes to do your business and wash your hands. As you left the bathroom and approached the landing of the stairs, you could hear the monsters conversing between themselves.

You inched further towards the wooden rail to eavesdrop, curiosity taking over.

"So, Papyrus… what's the deal with you and this human girl?" Undyne said, luckily she was quite loud, so you could hear her perfectly. You couldn't help but notice that her tone was very… suggestive.

"…WHAT DO YOU MEAN UNDYNE?" Papyrus seemed confused, causing Undyne to guffaw loudly.

"I'm not dumb Papyrus, I noticed your little… flirting thing going on!" Undyne pointed out with a toothy grin, her words caused your face to heat up with embarrassment.

 _Flirting…?_

Papyrus paused for a moment, and you couldn't breathe in the moment it took him to speak.

"NYEH… WE'RE JUST FRIENDS UNDYNE!" Papyrus said, sounding quite unsure of himself. You could feel your chest constrict at his words… you felt disappointed strangely enough.

"Oh come on!" Undyne had nudged Papyrus, not seeming to believe him in the slightest. "It's so obvious that there's something going on, and hey, I ain't here to judge if you like a human in that way… she seems harmless enough-"

"U-undyne," Alphys interrupted timidly, placing a hand on her girlfriend's shoulder. She seemed to notice Papyrus' uncertainty, the skeleton uncharacteristically quiet. "M-maybe you should back off a little?"

"Okay babe… but I know something is going on!" Undyne said with a huff, accepting defeat for now.

You wondered how you could go downstairs without them realizing you heard everything, you waited for a few minutes before descending the stairs, trying to keep your face as neutral as possible.

Papyrus beamed as he noticed your presence, now seeming unperturbed by Undyne's questioning. You sat next to him with a shaky smile, willing to forget the whole conversation you just heard.

But that was hard.

You've never liked someone romantically, or at least you didn't think so. Papyrus clearly only saw you as a friend, like he said- and you felt the same.

… _liar._

You resisted the urge to shake your head, to prevent looking insane. You instead tried to bury the confusing muddle of emotions that enveloped you when you thought of Papyrus.

…to no avail.

Papyrus was addictive and all-consuming, just thinking of the odd skeleton brought a smile to your face… you could lie to yourself, and say that the fuzzy feelings you always seemed to feel around him were due to his unconditional kindness.

After all, you were starved of such affection.

But you didn't feel the same fuzzy way about Toriel, or Frisk. It was obvious Papyrus was very special to you, more special than anybody you've ever met in your life.

But to admit that you might… like him... _in that way._

The thought alone terrified you. It made you want to puke, run away and never come back.

You knew it wasn't Papyrus' fault in the slightest, he was everything a person could want in a romantic partner. But your deep rooted insecurities and fears prevented you from even thinking of making an advance…

… _as if he would like me anyway, I would just be a burden to him… he's probably only nice to me because he pities me. That's it. I should just forget it._

Letting out a deep shaky sigh, you didn't realize you blanked out for a while. When you looked over to Papyrus, he was staring at you with concern.

"…ARE YOU ALRIGHT (y/n)?" Papyrus asked worriedly, and you felt some guilt at causing that. "…DO YOU NEED SOME SPACE IN YOUR ROOM, LIKE LAST TIME?"

You smiled, although it was strained.

"Huh, what's wrong?" Undyne asked you, sounding a little bit concerned. You could feel her cool hand grip your shoulder. It surprisingly helped to ground you further. "You ain't having one of those anxiety thingies are you?"

"A-anxiety attacks Undyne," Alphys corrected, and the shy monster sent you a reassuring smile. "I-I understand (y/n), I g-get them too... um… deep breathes h-help a lot."

You looked between the trio, and you forced yourself to take a deep breath. The anxiety that was building alongside your negative thoughts disappeared, the sudden urge to run was replaced with gratitude.

Just having people who understood, and who were willing to help even if they hardly knew you- it was nice.

"Thanks… um… I'm okay now though," You said quietly with a small nod, feeling quite embarrassed for causing concern. You looked down at your lap, fidgeting slightly.

"Um… m-maybe we should stop playing," Alphys suggested, glancing to the TV. "Uh M-mettaton's show should be on soon-"

"Ugh… do we have to watch him?" Undyne asked with a groan, while Papyrus perked up instantly. You were confused.

"…who's Mettaton?" You had to ask, it seemed there was so much you didn't know. Papyrus gasped at your words, looking quite surprised.

"YOU DON'T KNOW METTATON!?" Papyrus said bewildered, and he immediately reached out for the TV remote, flicking through the TV channels. "WE MUST IMMEDIATELY RESOLVE THIS ISSUE, I ASSURE YOU THAT BY THE END OF HIS PROGRAM- YOU WILL LOVE HIM!"

"Don't get your hopes up," Undyne sniggered, and Alphys poked her in response- trying to look stern… but it was difficult for a small monster like her to look threatening.

"B-be nice!" Alphys said with a huff, but she couldn't help but smile softly when Undyne snuggled up next to her, the fish monster wrapping an arm around her girlfriend.

"Okay, okay…" Undyne shrugged, placing a chaste kiss on Alphys' forehead- who reacted with a squeak. It was pretty cute.

You turned your gaze back to the TV, wondering who the hell Mettaton was. You assumed he was an actor of sorts, considering he had a show on television. You wondered if he was a human or monster, as you've never heard of him before.

"OH, HERE WE ARE!" Papyrus cheerfully exclaimed, as he finally found the right channel. The skeleton then leaned forwards with a giddy expression, already enraptured by the screen. You couldn't help but smile at his reaction.

Flashed across the screen, in bold pink letters were the words _**MTT broadcast will resume shortly!**_

A moment later, the screen transitioned- revealing a spotless pink kitchen. A bold title appeared above the set.

 _ **Cooking with Mettaton!**_

Suddenly, a tall and quite attractive humanoid being strutted on screen. He stood behind the kitchen counter with a smirk, wearing a short pink apron and white chef's hat… you assumed that this was Mettaton.

Mettaton was quite the feminine man, and he was looking at the camera with a sultry expression.

"Oh hello my darlings!" Mettaton crooned, it seemed like he was almost constantly in a pose… you weren't quite sure what to think of him yet. "Welcome to my fabulous show, 'Cooking with Mettaton'™!"

"Today I shall be showing you, my wonderful viewers, on how to perfect my infamous dish… the Glamburger™!"

Mettaton then revealed a bright pink burger, covered entirely in sequins and jewels. You couldn't help but stare in confused revulsion.

… _I really hope they're edible._

"OH, I SHOULD WRITE THIS ALL DOWN! I MAY BE ABLE TO APPLY IT TO MY SPAGHETTI!" Papyrus said, mainly to himself. You watched with wide eyes as the skeleton procured a notepad and pen, intent on writing notes.

You didn't have the heart to point out to how glitter and spaghetti couldn't possibly mix well, you instead kept quiet and continued watching the show.

It was like any other cooking show, but perhaps more flamboyant and glittery than usual. Mettaton was very suave, and after a while you found yourself entertained by his glitzy personality.

You leaned back against the sofa cushions, content on relaxing and enjoying some mindless TV… but you couldn't help but glance at Papyrus every so often, your earlier panic resurfacing again as you looked at the skeleton.

Luckily he was quite absorbed in the show, so he didn't notice your obvious stare.

You knew you couldn't reveal your feelings to him, the thought alone was nauseating. But you couldn't deny, not even to yourself… that you had a serious crush on the skeleton.

… _shit._


	6. Tension

**Author note-** Whoa... I am like so sorry for the long ass wait guys. I've been so busy with finishing college for the summer, getting TWO jobs and trying to find time to relax. I find that writing can be a big drain on me at times, especially when I don't have that creative drive due to tiredness...

This chapter took me way too long to churn out, I even had to rewrite it because I hated where it was going.

I hope the next update won't take as long, as I have a clear plan of the next two chapters... but it's all dependent on whether I actually get time to sit down and write :/

Anyway, enjoy! And please let me know if you liked this chapter, I'm still not sure on it haha...

((psst, this is like twice as long as any other chapter, so consider it two as reward for your paitence c;))

-x-

 **Chapter Six**

Tension

Mettaton's show seemed to go on for hours, but you practically missed most of it, as you were trying your best to not visibly panic at your earlier realization.

It wasn't often you crushed on a person… let alone a monster.

At one point, Undyne had brought some snacks in bowls, allowing you to mindlessly munch on some potato chips for some well needed distraction. You couldn't bring yourself to glance towards Papyrus, despite the growing urge to do so.

You noticed that the others had looked at you with concern every so often, picking up on your stifling silence. When Undyne had looked at you with a raised brow, you tried to smile to reassure her… it wasn't very successful.

Thankfully, she didn't call you out on it

 _Get a grip…_

Before you knew it, it was already four o' clock in the evening. You realized this when Toriel, Frisk and Sans came through the front door. You couldn't help but smile, especially when Frisk approached you to give you a hug, which you returned without hesitation.

"Hello Undyne and Alphys," Toriel greeted the two, smiling warmly. "Are you two staying over?"

"Yeah… that okay with you?" Undyne replied, receiving a nod from Toriel. You couldn't help but notice how polite Undyne was towards Toriel, a noticeable difference from how she usually spoke to the others.

"Of course it is, I shall prepare some dinner for everyone," Toriel stated, and with a nod she went to the kitchen, Sans following behind her with a lazy grin, you couldn't help but feel fearful at his presence.

Frisk went to squeeze between you and Papyrus on the sofa, the movement causing you to glance towards that direction, and lock gazes with the tall skeleton.

Your blush was immediate, and you hated yourself for reacting in such an obvious way.

However, Papyrus didn't seem to notice or care, as he broke the gaze with you to look down at Frisk with a bright smile.

"HUMAN, HOW WAS SCHOOL?" Papyrus had asked, and you looked away from the interaction to the carpeted floor. You felt ashamed for the obvious reaction, anyone with half a brain would surely work it out.

With that in mind, you glanced towards Undyne and Alphys, who were conversing between themselves. When you looked over, Alphys had met your gaze; her brown eyes briefly flickering to Papyrus.

You couldn't help but swallow heavily, feeling the urge to run away.

With that, you stood up, reassuring the others with a small smile. No one tried to stop you as you walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water, you felt quite parched from all the internal panicking.

Once you entered the kitchen, which was hot and steamy from all the cooking pans on the stove, Toriel and Sans who were speaking went silent.

You realized you interrupted their hushed conversation, so you felt quite sheepish.

"Oh hello (y/n)," Toriel greeted you warmly, not seeming annoyed at the interruption. You smiled unsurely, looking between her and the short skeleton. "Was there anything you needed?"

"Hi… and um, just a glass of water," You said, and went to the cupboard to grab a glass. You couldn't help but feel awkward as Sans stayed unusually quiet, Toriel stirring one of the cooking pots with a quiet hum.

"Oh… could you tell the others that dinner is nearly ready, and to set the table?" Toriel asked, to which you nodded in reply.

"Yeah, sure," was your simple answer.

You then quickly filled the glass with water from the tap, giving Toriel a glance as you left the kitchen. You couldn't help but feel worried from the serious vibe in the room; you wondered whether it was your fault…

 _Had Sans been talking about me?_ You wondered, but the thought seemed stupid. There were more important things than a damaged human with way too many problems, surely.

As you entered the living room, the sight that had met you made you smile. Both Papyrus and Frisk were doing some colouring on the floor, while Alphys and Undyne were cuddled on the sofa, watching some cartoon on the television. From the looks of it, the two girlfriends were quite focused on the show.

You almost felt bad for breaking the peace.

-x-

With their help, the large oak table in the dining room was all set for dinner, everyone settling into their respective seats. Alphys and Undyne sat next to each other, naturally. While you were sat between Frisk and Papyrus, the other skeleton's presence a noticeable one, you couldn't help but glance at him every so often.

Papyrus seemed unaware of your internal distress, caught up in friendly banter with Undyne. You decided to be quiet and only observe their light hearted bickering; you looked forward to the undoubtedly lovely meal that Toriel would bring out.

As if sensing your thoughts, Toriel had entered the dining room with Sans not far behind, carrying a tray of food. The motherly goat monster placed the dishes on the table, handing out a plate to everyone with a smile.

"Enjoy," Toriel said simply, grabbing her own seat to start eating, Sans sat next to her. You looked down at the mouth watering food, which was a simple but homely lasagne; you were unable to resist tearing into it.

Dinner was a quiet but comfortable affair, everyone preoccupied with their food to make much conversation. You wouldn't admit it, but being sat so close to Papyrus was nice, comforting even.

The urge to lean into him was strong, but you resisted.

After a while, when the lasagne was all eaten and pie was being brought out, you started to feel as if someone was staring at you. Looking up, your curious gaze locked with Sans'.

The skeleton didn't look away when you noticed, and neither did you. You felt an anger rise within you, the urge to say something was building. You couldn't understand why the skeleton seemed to dislike you, or was wary of you at least.

 _Surely that one incident with Papyrus wasn't enough to warrant this?_ You thought, curiously. You were starting to think that Sans just hated humans in general… but then again, he was friendly with Frisk.

You broke the eye contact first, looking down to the table where Toriel just placed some delicious pie. You grabbed a fork and knife, eating the pie slowly.

"How was everyone's day?" Toriel asked with a smile, her warm gaze landing on you. You tried to mirror her smile, shrugging slightly.

"It was… good," You said simply, and it wasn't exactly a lie. Aside from the internal realisation that left you panicking, it was fun hanging out with Papyrus and the others.

"VERY MUCH SO," Papyrus spoke up, his tone turning mischievous. "AFTER ALL, BOTH (y/n) AND I DECIMATED UNDYNE AND ALPHYS AT SMASH-"

"Hey!" Undyne interrupted him, a competitive glint in her yellow eyes. "That's totally not true Paps, you dirty liar!"

"NYEH HEH HEH, I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!" Papyrus grinned, deftly dodging Undyne's shove with ease.

"Now, now… I'm sure you both did well," Toriel said, trying to placate the two, although she didn't look too worried.

You were starting to think that it was normal for the two best friends to bicker and get competitive, so you couldn't help but smile in amusement.

-x-

After dessert, everyone had made their way into the living room. Toriel was sat on an armchair reading, while Undyne and Alphys took one of the loveseats. Papyrus, Sans, Frisk and yourself took the large sofa- thankfully you were sat on the end next to Papyrus, Sans far on the other side.

You didn't have anything against the short skeleton, but you appreciated the space away from his cold stares. If you had the bravery to, you would probably ask what his problem was.

But the thought of confronting him was nerve-wracking, so you decided not to.

Someone had grabbed the television remote, as the screen turned on. It was currently on a human news channel, seemingly boring.

However, something caught your eye. The others must have picked up on it too, as no one tried to change the channel.

 _MONSTERS: A THREAT TO US ALL?_

The news title made you gulp, and you looked to the others with a frown. Undyne looked visibly angry, while Alphys and Toriel held worried expressions. Papyrus seemed shocked to see the words, while Sans' held a dark expression that made you shiver- his eyes void of any light.

You decided to focus on the reporter, feeling a surge of anger. It had already been a year, yet people were still worried about monsters?

You knew they were harmless, and having feelings for one made it even more personal.

 _"_ _Good evening viewers, tonight on Channel Nine News, we will be discussing whether the Monster race poses a serious threat to humanity."_ The reported began; you couldn't help but glare at the screen. You felt insulted at his relaxed tone and expression, did they not know how offensive such a claim was?

 _"_ _It has been over a year since the Monsters appeared and settled within our communities, while there has been some tentative peace thanks to negotiations between the President and King Asgore Dreemurr, there have been some concerns from experts of the power these creatures have..."_

Alongside the reporter on the screen, a box popped up, inside was sat a serious looking and aged moustached man, wearing a green military jacket. You immediately hated his appearance; the whole "military" look put you off.

 _"_ _Captain Evans, head of the Military and Defence Force."_ The reported said, introducing the other man. _"You have some concerns with the safety of our people, is that so?"_

 _"_ _Of course, ever since the day they arrived I have always been concerned for our people. Monsters have the power to use "magic", a terribly powerful force that could potentially wipe us out. We have no defence against these creatures!"_

"BULLSHIT!" Undyne shouted out in anger, and her gaze flickered to Frisk and Toriel. "Uh… sorry, but this guy is a joke!"

You agreed.

 _"_ _Some argue that if that was true, why haven't the Monsters done so already?"_ The reporter pointed out, you were even surprised they weren't being completely biased. It seemed like the type of network to be so.

 _"_ _That is a true point, yes, but just because they haven't attacked yet, doesn't mean they won't. What if a Monster commits a crime of sort, and because they don't want to be arrested, they'll use their magic in offense? It's a risk I don't want to take, because it could be completely catastrophic for us!"_

 _"_ _You say you don't have any defence; are there any safeguards at all in case of a Monster attack?"_

 _"_ _Ever since their arrival, my men have been putting into place some defences… but because their "magic" is so unpredictable, we can't say for sure whether we can truly protect our people from any possible attacks. Every Monster is unique in looks and skills; therefore we can't make a universal defence against them."_

 _"_ _What do you propose, in terms of defence?"_

 _"_ _We need to understand them as a species, I suggest we take willing volunteers and study them… find out what we can do to protect everyone-"_

"Experimentation…" Undyne growled out, you felt sick. "That's basically what he's suggesting!"

"…who would volunteer for that?" You questioned quietly, looking between everyone's worried and angry expressions. No one answered, although you already knew the answer.

No one would willingly go through that.

Looking back to the television, there was another man on the screen, walking onto the news studio. He was tall and lean, had blonde stylish hair and looked quite young… too young to be a Senator, you thought with surprise.

 _"_ _Senator Seymour, it is good to have you on the show."_ The reporter simpered, Seymour nodding with a smile.

 _"_ _It is good to be here,"_ Seymour said simply, his voice was full of warmth but also professionalism.

You didn't know what to make of him yet.

 _"_ _We must thank you for taking time out of your campaign to come here and talk about this issue, what is your opinion on the debate?"_

 _"_ _That is no problem, I am always happy to discuss pressing issues that affect us all."_ Seymour said, _"…and my opinion may not be a popular one..."_

 _"_ _Monsters hold a special power, that I know and agree with… but I cannot go along with Captain Evans suggestion, while Monsters are very powerful, they have always been kind and friendly to us. I have not met a Monster with any ill intent, and ever since their arrival, there have been next-to-none Monster/Human incidents."_

 _"_ _So… you are completely against any defence protocols at all, then?"_

 _"_ _Oh, definitely not, as a country we must be able to fight off any threat- whether it is our human neighbours or Monsters. It would be smart to at least have a backup plan of some kind, even if the likelihood of a Monster attacking is very low."_

You were still unsure of the Senator, but it seemed as if he was defending the Monsters.

 _"_ _Is it true you have a plan to deal with the rising tension between us and the Monsters?"_

 _"_ _Yes, I have been thinking long and hard of how to deal with this sensitive issue to appease both sides... I have come to a solution with other officials, which will benefit both us and the monsters."_

The tension in the room was unbearable, you couldn't help yourself as you reached out for Papyrus' gloved hand- squeezing it in comfort. It was instinctual.

 _"_ _Well, what is this solution?"_

 _"_ _In order to prevent further frustrations between the Monsters and us, I propose we take a few "step backs." It is known that the vast majority of Monsters reside beside Mt. Ebbott, having made the nearby town into their own community. I propose we enact a law that prohibits humans from entering that community… and from Monsters leaving it-"_

"Segregation…?" You wondered aloud, still clinging onto Papyrus' hand. You felt him squeeze you back in reassurance. Glancing up to the skeleton, he looked down to you with a sad smile.

"I'M SURE IT WILL BE OKAY…?" Papyrus trailed off, trying to be positive. You couldn't help but notice it didn't sound convincing at all, but you appreciated his efforts for trying to cheer you up.

You gave him a tight smile, turning your gaze back to the television.

 _"_ _While some may view this law as unfair, I think it is in our best interests- everyone's best interests – that we take such serious action. It is known that the relations between Monsters and Humans can be shaky at best of times, which can lead to hate related crime and may escalate to full blown war between our communities. If we were to take a step back and insert some ground rules for everyone, we could save countless lives and eventually co-exist in true peace…"_

"P-peace?" Alphys repeated with a snort, her usually shy expression was stony. Undyne was practically shaking beside her, looking murderous.

"That's so frickin' stupid…" Undyne growled out, her arms crossed in her fury. "We _are_ at peace, it's not our fault those humans are cowards!"

Realizing her words, Undyne looked at you with a slight hint of sheepishness. You shook your head with a sad smile, you agreed with her.

"You're not wrong, humans _are_ cowards." You stated with your fists clenched, feeling so helpless and frustrated. "I can't believe that after a year, they would pull this crap… I'm so sorry…"

"IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT!" Papyrus burst out, the skeleton wrapping a comforting arm around your shoulders. You didn't even have the energy to freak out; you found his touch soothing if anything else. "I DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY THESE HUMANS ARE SO AFRAID… BUT I DO KNOW ONE THING, WHICH IS TO STAY POSTIVE! I'M SURE ALL THEY NEED IS SOME REASSURANCE OF OUR KIND INTENTIONS!"

"heh…"

You looked from Papyrus' glittering sockets to stare at Sans on the other end of the sofa, the short skeleton had been deathly quiet throughout the news broadcast, and you gulped heavily at his expression. It was almost as bad as the look he held when threatening you previously, it seemed everyone else noticed it as well.

"sorry bro… but some humans won't learn," Sans said with a nonchalant shrug, you swallowed heavily, looking between Sans' dark expression and Papyrus' upset one. "I don't think many are as open minded as little Frisk here…"

You couldn't help but feel offended, as Sans didn't even acknowledge you as one of the "open-minded" humans. Instead of voicing it, you just bit your lip and looked down to the carpet- catching the attention of Frisk, who went to hold your other hand in reassurance.

You smiled down at your pseudo sibling, trying reassure them too.

"WHAT DO YOU SUGGEST THEN?" Papyrus huffed, sounding unusually frustrated at his brother. It wasn't like the skeleton brothers to argue, not that you've been around long enough to make that judgement. "WE MUST TRY OUR BEST TO SHOW THEM THE BETTER WAY, NOT TO STOOP TO THEIRS!"

"Well said Papyrus," Toriel spoke up, the goat monster also silent throughout the news. She sighed, and went to stand. "It is a difficult situation indeed, but if I may, I think it is Frisk's bedtime."

Frisk pouted, and went to hide behind your legs. Your smile became much more genuine at the action, as you ruffled their hair with a teasing glint in your eyes.

"Hey, it's time for bed kid, so you can stop hiding." You said lightly.

Frisk only sighed in response, giving you and the others in the room a brief but warm hug, before following Toriel up the stairs. You watched them for a moment, feeling only a little bit lighter.

After all, the humans had just basically declared imprisoning Monsters in their own homes.

The air in the room was still thick with tension; it was almost suffocating for you. The only thing keeping you grounded was Papyrus' arm, which still had not left your shoulders. You noticed that the two skeleton brothers exchanged looks, almost as if they were communicating telepathically.

It seemed that Papyrus was upset with Sans, but you couldn't tell how Sans was feeling- he didn't wear his heart on his sleeve like his brother. To you, Sans was a complete enigma. One that seemed to have something against any human that wasn't Frisk… including you.

As Toriel descended the stairs, a worrying thought occurred to you.

"Wait…" You said, with a sharp intake of breath. "That Senator said that the law would prevent Monsters from leaving the town… but he also said humans wouldn't be able to enter?"

"Y-yeah…" Alphys nodded, and her eyes widened with realization. You looked at each other with understanding.

"That means I wouldn't be allowed here with you anymore… neither would Frisk…" You gaped, the others mirroring your shock.

When your glassy eyes met Toriel's, her expression was one of pure fury.

"I won't let them take Frisk, or you for the matter." Toriel stated and her tone was completely void of anything. You were so used to her warmth that the change was startling, even the look in Toriel's eyes was scary. "They can try, but they will have to get through me."

"And me!" Undyne agreed, looking eager at the prospect of fighting.

"Uh… same h-here!" Alphys stuttered out, looking half afraid but half determined also.

"ME TOO OF COURSE!" Papyrus said with a puff of his chest, he looked down at you with a bright smile. You noticed there was also a hard look in his eyes, one that made your heart and stomach flutter. "THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL SEE TO YOUR PROTECTION (y/n)!"

"Hah… thanks Papyrus," You said softly, fidgeting with your hands. You were starting to realize how much these Monsters meant to you, the thought of being forced out on the streets again was an upsetting one.

Despite your guilt for staying, you really didn't want to leave.

It was very conflicting.

"Well… I suppose I will contact Asgore now," Toriel stated with a sigh, the name rang a bell and it took you a moment to realize it was the Monster King she spoke of. "We must organise a meeting of sorts to prevent this law from being enacted."

"Did you need me to come along too?" Undyne asked, looking fiercely protective. "Y'know… just in case?"

"That won't be needed, but thank you Undyne." Toriel said with a kind nod, you thought it was kind of scary how quick Toriel could go from furious to motherly again. "But I might be gone for a few days, depending on where the human leaders want to meet. I can trust everyone here to take care of Frisk when I leave, I usually take them… but I'd rather they be here."

"Fair enough," Undyne nodded, and everyone else copied the motion. "We'll take care of the squirt."

"Once again, thank you." Toriel said with a tired smile, as she dialled a number in her phone. She entered the kitchen to have some privacy, you presumed.

Sans let out a sigh, the almost inaudible sound catching your attention.

"welp, I'm feelin' pretty _bone-tired_ …" Sans joked, although he lacked his usual mirth. Sans went to stand, slouching in his usual lazy way. "I think I'm off for a nap, lemme know if anything happens."

"NIGHT BROTHER," Papyrus said simply, his smile genuine but small as Sans left.

To your surprise, Papyrus didn't even call Sans out on the pun. The broadcast must have really gotten under his skin (metaphorical of course), the thought made you frown.

You really didn't like seeing Papyrus upset, it seemed unnatural to the usually bubbly skeleton. You started to realize how much you depended on the monster to keep you feeling positive, Papyrus was like a breath of fresh air in this world you believed cruel.

 _Stupid humans…_ you thought, realizing how much you hated your own race sometimes. While you were sure there were _some_ good people, it seemed the bad outweighed them.

Now, it was only you, Papyrus, Undyne and Alphys left. Both Undyne and Alphys were quiet, watching the television with little interest- thankfully the news had been changed over to some strange Japanese game show.

You usually enjoyed the silliness of those shows, but nothing could improve your heavy mood.

With a sigh, you leant back- only to realize that Papyrus' arm was still around you. You could feel your cheeks redden, glancing towards the skeleton. It seemed he was too wrapped up in the game show to notice your reaction, or your internal debate of whether to stay in his hold or move away.

The thought of moving away was very painful, so you decided you would enjoy the contact for the time being. However brief it is.

 _I may not be acting on my stupid feelings… but even I think I deserve some comfort right now…_ You thought, letting yourself relax for once. You tried to keep your mind clear, of any worries, with your feelings, the new possible law, everything.

But you were always terrible at not worrying.

After a while, even the comfort of Papyrus' arm wasn't enough. You couldn't help but feel overwhelmed, the worried thoughts in your head were escalating- you knew you needed some space to breathe before you had a panic attack.

"Um, I'm off to bed now…" You said quietly, moving away from Papyrus' arm- despite the fact it was pure torture to do so. The yawn that left your lips wasn't exactly forced either, you thought it might do you some good to sleep.

"OH… YOU'RE OFF ALREADY?" Papyrus said, sounding saddened by that… for whatever reason. The skeleton gave you a warm smile, one which made you breathe slightly faster. "USUALLY ON SLEEPOVERS WE COMPETE TO SEE WHO STAYS UP THE LONGEST, BUT I SHALL GRANT YOU THIS EXCEPTION ONCE!"

"Thanks," You said with a dry laugh, "I'm sure you'd win anyway…"

"WELL, OF COURSE!" Papyrus said with a grin, you were glad to see his usual bright expression was returning.

"N-night (y/n)!" Alphys said with a small wave, you smiled back at her and Undyne- who nodded towards you with a slight smile.

With that, you made your way to the guest room- or your unofficial yet official room. Once you shut the door behind yourself, you let out a heavy sigh.

 _Today was… interesting._

As you undressed into your night clothes, the events of the day repeated in your mind. You smiled as you remembered the fun you had with Papyrus, Alphys and Undyne… it was a pretty fun sleepover.

Aside from the anger inducing news broadcast, the realization of your feelings for a certain skeleton, it was a good day.

Sinking down into the mattress, you sighed again. You were at complete loss at what to do, while you had decided to try to get rid of the crush, you had a feeling it wouldn't be so easy. You decided to do what you did every time you gained a crush you didn't want… weigh out the pros and cons.

 _Pro… Papyrus is a genuinely kind, helpful and lovely person. There isn't a bad bone in his body… snicker._

 _Con… I'm a terrible person, with so much baggage. Papyrus deserves better._

 _Pro… Despite his non-human looks, I find him attractive… in his own skeleton way._

 _Con… His brother will kill me for even thinking of going for Papyrus._

 _Pro… Aside from Sans, every one of Papyrus' friends and family like me… so I think anyway._

 _Con… I'm a human, and he's a monster… how does that even work?_

You found that there were many pros and cons when it came to dating Papyrus, not that you thought you had a chance. If anything, most of the downsides were due to you, and not the lovable skeleton in the other room. With another saddened sigh, you turned on your side- trying to find a comfortable position.

You didn't even know whether you were going to stay with them, despite your promise to Frisk, and your intense attachment to them… you still felt like a bother.

 _Hey insecurities, shut up…_ You thought dryly, closing your eyes to try to get some sleep.

Surprisingly, it didn't take long to drift off.


	7. Past

**Author note-**

Welp, another long update- and this chapter was finished ages ago! I just needed to tweak it to a standard I felt okay with, I actually had to chop this chapter in half as well, it was hitting the 9000 word count!

In this chapter, have some Frisk background and even Reader background revealed ;) plot, plot, plot...

...and if you're smart, you might piece together who a certain person in this chapter is in the actual game!

 **(Possible triggers- nightmares, blood, implied death, sad times in general...)**

-x-

 **Chapter Seven**

Past

Your sleep was not a dreamless affair.

It was dark, and in the middle of the night, you presumed. From where you stood in the middle of the shadowy clearing, tall ominous trees surrounded you… blocking out any of the starlit sky. You could make out your own pale, trembling hands- which were clenched tightly.

You were terrified.

"Sss…"

You heard the trees whisper, the breeze almost sounding human. Looking around the dark clearing, you knew that you were alone.

But you felt a presence.

"H-hello…?"

You called out, your voice sounding so faint compared to the crashing orchestra of the woods. It felt as if your voice was being carried out by the wind, only to be stifled by the vastness of the forest.

"Si…"

Another hushed whisper, one that sounded somewhat closer.

But no matter how much you looked and focused your sight around the dark clearing… you saw that you were alone.

You tried to call out again, but as you opened your mouth, you found you physically couldn't- your throat felt closed up with pure fear, it was almost painful trying to speak aloud. The fear was too much, you wanted to run, leave the dark woods and never return.

You took a tentative step, your feet feeling unusually heavy.

Approaching the tall, dark trees almost felt impossible. But eventually, you found that when you reached the leering figures - that they formed a makeshift wall, preventing any possible escape from the clearing.

You gasped out, feeling wetness forming in your eyes.

"Sis…"

Another whisper from the trees, and you gulped heavily when you realized the words.

Turning around, you noticed that there was now a never seen before pathway through the trees- the only accessible way out.

You didn't want to follow the path, afraid of what you might find… or who.

"H... he…"

The whisper stuttered, sounding desperate. The tears that formed were now falling freely from your blurry eyes, your chest felt painful with grief and pure terror.

"HELP!"

The once whisper now screamed, causing the trees around you to shake violently- it seemed the entire forest was reacting to the voice. Even the ground beneath you shook as if it would break apart, the motion causing you to scream aloud.

The scream was easily swallowed by the vastness.

Despite your fear, you felt you needed to find the source of the voice- so you did the only thing you could think of and ran towards the open pathway, ignoring the heaviness of your feet and chest.

As you turned back to the clearing, the tall trees that were once open were now twisted together. Leaving you with only one direction to go, which was a dirt path that seemed to lead upwards, tall dark trees still blocked most of your vision of the sky.

You began to walk, ignoring the involuntary shiver that ran through your spine. You felt as if you were being watched, but no matter how hard you tried- you couldn't see a thing. It made traversing the path dangerous, as you felt for any rocks and logs before you could trip on them.

But the desperate voice continued to yell out as you walked slowly, most of it was unintelligible. But from what you could pick up on in your confusion, the person needed your help.

"Please…"

"Sis…"

"H-h…"

As you finally reached the peak of the hill, out of breath and practically crawling in your exhaustion, the voice had suddenly stopped.

You looked around for the source, but the woods were now deathly silent. You noticed with an exhale of fear that there was only a gaping chasm in the ground in front of you, and there was no other direction to go.

You felt the presence behind you.

Swallowing heavily, you turned to face them.

You were met with a young child, one you didn't quite recognise or expect.

The child had short brown hair, pale skin and startling rosy cheeks, but the most horrifying thing was their eyes.

They were blood red.

You couldn't breathe or even move as they approached you, a glint caught your attention and you realized the child held a knife. You gasped out as they smiled; the tilt of their lips brought a sick sense of dread to your stomach.

"You failed him…" The child whispered out tauntingly, still smiling. They were now only a few inches away from you, their knife held out threateningly. "The only family you had left… and you let him rot."

With that, the child slashed the knife across your stomach- pain lancing throughout your body. You watched in shock as blood stained your thin ripped shirt, leaking out onto the ground.

The child looked on in glee as you fell to your knees, gripping your stomach with a pained expression. As you bled out on the ground, the child kneeled beside you, leaning down to whisper in your ears.

"You deserve to die." The child said.

You finally screamed.

* * *

You awoke with a start, sat up on your bed in a cold sweat. You were unsure of whether you screamed aloud or not, alerting the others to your nightmare. You tried to calm your breathing, still feeling shaken from the horrible dream.

It had brought up some old, old memories.

Ones you didn't want to think about, ones you'd rather repress again.

Moving slowly to sit on the edge of the bed, you let out a deep sigh. It seemed that you didn't make much noise throughout the nightmare- as there was no sign of Toriel or even Papyrus knocking on your door.

Usually, you would prefer to be left alone, but for whatever reason, you would have liked them to come in and comfort you.

You shuddered, remembering the blood red eyes of that child… if it could even be called that.

Once you felt your legs weren't going to give out on you, you stood. Making your way to door, you decided you would get some water to cool your nerves. You didn't feel quite ready for sleep again, lest that dream surface again.

You quietly made your way across the dark living room, careful to not make any noise as it was late. It took you a moment to realize that you weren't the only person in the room, a moving shadow on the couch catching the corner of your eye.

Turning to face them, you realized it was Frisk.

You had to double-take, your throat drying up even more as you stared at them. For the split second you looked at the younger human, they almost looked identical to the red-eyed monster in your nightmare.

However, a closer inspection calmed your already frayed nerves. Whilst the nightmare child had blood red eyes and rosy cheeks, Frisk had deep brown eyes and a tanned complexion. There were other differences, such as different tones of brown in the hair, and Frisk had bags under their eyes and a sad look in their eyes- whilst the monster looked almost inhuman in their apathy.

"H-hey…" You finally croaked out, realizing how freaked out you must have looked. Frisk gave you a shaky smile, seeming equally upset. You went to sit beside them. "…you had a nightmare again?"

You received a nod, a moment later a crinkled note was being passed to you.

'Did you have a nightmare too?'

The note said, and you let out a shaky breath after taking in the words- not realizing you had held it in. With some hesitation, you nodded.

Frisk gave you an understanding look, one that made you smile a little.

Despite the heaviness in your heart, and the urge to run and lock away the horrible memories… you felt that you could trust Frisk completely, and you had something big on your mind you needed to let out.

You began to physically shake at the thought of being completely honest, the words you were about to say you have never admitted aloud, to anyone.

"Frisk…" You said, your voice sounding completely broken. The child grabbed your shaking hands, giving you an encouraging smile. It worked. "I-I don't know why… but I want to tell you something… something I've been hiding for years."

You paused, gathering the courage to speak. Frisk only stared patiently at you, never judging, or forcing you to speak more.

You thought that was the reason why you ever considered telling them.

"I… had a brother," You forced out, your voice breaking slightly. You looked away from Frisk's wide eyes, not bearing to see their reaction. "Once… a long time ago…"

Taking another deep breath, you gathered your strength.

"There's a reason I don't trust so easily, or why I try not to get too attached to a person…" You began. "My parents had died when I was too young to remember them, and I had no other family that wanted the burden of caring for me."

"But, I had my brother… he was older, only by three years. We were inseparable, practically twins with the way we acted and how close our bond was. Even when we were being shipped off to the orphanage, we had hope. It didn't matter if we found "new parents" or not, because we had each other… god… I loved him so much…"

You were crying, you realized. Frisk was wiping away a few of your tears, looking equally upset. The comforting motion gave you the strength to continue, despite your tears.

"He was always so… brave, no matter what happened he was always so confident and strong… he would stand up against the bullies, he was never afraid to speak his mind." You said, your lips tilting into a small smile at the bittersweet memories. "…I always looked up to him; I wished I could have been as brave as him…"

You paused, feeling your lip trembling in your grief. Frisk only held onto you, waiting patiently.

"I lost him, when I was eight." You stated, staring down at your clenched hands. "It was my fault; I had the stupid idea of running away from the orphanage because it wasn't so… nice… so we left together. We were too young and naïve to realize how dangerous it was, not that my brother would be so easily scared. We did okay for a few hours, but we were lost- eventually we found our way to this forest by the mountain. It was nice, quiet. No one was around to bother us, so we decided to sleep there for the night…"

If you closed your eyes, you could almost envision the memory perfectly.

"Hey, sis, look at this!" Your brother said, pointing to a cave in the distance. He looked so proud, grinning behind his bandana. "We can sleep there for the night!"

"Is it safe?" You had asked, nervously, as you held your older brother's hand. You hadn't let go the entire time you left the orphanage. "Isn't there… bears?"

"Course' not! But I'll protect you, sis." Your brother had declared, pulling you along to the small cave in the mountainside. Thankfully, inside was empty of any possible threat- bear or other.

The two of you had settled down on the hard cave floor, cuddling next to each other for warmth. However, after shivering for too long, your brother had stood- to gather wood for a fire.

"I'll be back, promise!" Your brother said, with an assured smile. You watched him leave, unable to stop him in your fear.

"He never came back, and after a few hours I went to look for him… but I was too scared to look far, I just wanted to go back to the orphanage. I screamed for him for hours, and eventually… I was found by the police. I could've died from hyperthermia that night, but I didn't care- because I had lost the only important thing in my life that day."

By this point, your tears and shaking had stopped completely. It seemed that finally admitting some of your past aloud had helped, although your heart still felt incredibly heavy. You sniffed, wiping your reddened nose.

"…his name was Alex." You sighed, finally looking up to meet Frisk's gaze. The child looked completely shocked, but held an understanding in their eyes. "He was declared dead a few months later, but they never found a trace of him by that mountain. So I don't know what to believe."

Frisk looked down, giving your clenched hands a comforting squeeze.

"Uh… sorry…" You then mumbled out, feeling awkward. You didn't quite like being vulnerable in front of a person and you had practically opened your entire rib cage open for Frisk to see. "That was probably inappropriate of me to say, you're a kid after all… you shouldn't hear these things."

Frisk shook their head, not seeming disturbed in the slightest. They began writing on their notepad, and you waited patiently- glad to have some time to stay quiet after your emotional outburst.

It took Frisk a while to write what they wanted to say, and you noticed that the child paused every so often, looking thoughtful of their next words. When the paper was passed to you, Frisk had glassy eyes, looking both upset and happy.

You took the note with some reservation, looking down to read it.

'I ran away too.'

The note said, you looked at it with some surprise.

'I didn't have a very nice or safe life before I met my Mom, I went to the mountain because I didn't want to live anymore. I remembered the tales of that mountain, how children who climbed it disappeared. I wanted to disappear."

You gasped, not hesitating in pulling Frisk in for a hug. You continued to read the note, feeling emotion swell inside you.

'But I met my true family, and realized that being kind and forgiving to others was the only way to survive. I didn't want to be like my human family, or the rest of humanity- too scared to open their heart to others who are different. I believe you can be just as brave as your brother, and that you can finally find happiness with us."

"Frisk…" You trailed off, unsure of what to feel. If anything, you felt so empty from crying so hard. You rubbed Frisk's back in comfort, smiling slightly at your next words. "I can't believe I'm saying this… but I'll stay."

Frisk grinned happily, looking pleased with your decision.

"I think it's time you went back to bed," You stated, smiling at Frisk's pout. "Come on, it's really late now… don't want you tired for all of tomorrow now?"

Frisk shrugged, but stood to leave- they grabbed your hand to pull you along. You smiled as they led you to their room, letting you tuck them in their large bed.

As you went to leave, Frisk grabbed your wrist.

"Don't go" Frisk mouthed, and with a defeated sigh you nodded. You settled beside the child on their bed, and took the note that was passed to you.

'Can you stay until I fall asleep?' It said, and you nodded.

"Of course," You said softly, watching with a small smile as Frisk closed their eyes with a peaceful sigh.

After everything you've been through, you were starting to think you could open your heart again, properly this time. Frisk felt like your younger sibling, and the protectiveness you felt over them was almost startling.

No one would replace Alex, but you felt that Frisk and the others could help with your recovery.

You just had to open up.

* * *

You found you couldn't fall asleep again, the nightmare still heavy on your mind. Instead of resting, and possibly having a repeat of the dream, you decided to sit downstairs and watch some TV- the volume low of course.

It wasn't long before you heard someone quietly descend the stairs, and in a glance you saw it was Toriel. You noticed with dismay that she looked quite tired, her usually neat fur was messier than usual, and her eyes that were usually bright were now dull and full of exhaustion.

However, she still smiled when she noticed your presence.

"Oh, hello (y/n)…" Toriel said quietly, settling into her armchair with a yawn. "I did not expect you to be up so early, did you have trouble sleeping?"

"Yeah… kinda," You said, honestly. But you were more concerned with Toriel's state than your own. "Um, are you alright?"

Toriel almost looked surprised at your question, as if not expecting it. You supposed that she was more used to comforting others, than receiving it.

"Well… not entirely," Toriel sighed out, her smile seeming more like a grimace now. "I do not want to worry you, but I am concerned. These past few months have been quite hard on us Monsters, many of us have gone missing, and have experienced bad treatment from some ignorant humans."

"Oh… I'm really sorry to hear that…" You said, feeling quite ashamed of your own race. You weren't aware that Monsters were going missing though, a fact that both angered and worried you.

"It isn't your fault, my child." Toriel said reassuringly, although her frown remained. "Both I and Asgore expected some negative reactions to the Monster presence, but we never expected the Government to enact laws as serious as segregation. It is even worse, as it puts both you and Frisk at danger of being taken from us."

Toriel swallowed, and you noticed with some surprise that she was at the verge of tears. It was almost off-putting seeing a usually warm, motherly and strong woman such as Toriel so emotional.

"…I… I can't lose another child…" Toriel said quietly, and you weren't entirely sure whether she meant to say that aloud. You stared as she tried to compose herself, unsure of what to do to help.

After a few minutes, Toriel finally spoke again. Whilst less emotional, her eyes were still glassy with unshed tears.

"I am sorry for that, my child." Toriel said evenly, and you shook your head.

"It's okay," You said, in your most reassuring tone. "It is a really bad situation… you're allowed to be upset."

"Yes… I suppose you're right," Toriel sighed, and went to wipe her eyes. You looked away, you always felt so uncomfortable with people who were crying. You never knew how to properly comfort someone; you could barely do it for yourself.

"Does Sans hate me?" You suddenly asked, and you were just as shocked as Toriel at your sudden question. You didn't regret asking, but you never expected you would.

"Hate you…?" Toriel repeated, almost staring in her shock. You looked away, not really expecting a proper answer. "…what makes you think such a thing?"

"Well," You began stiffly, feeling frustration bubble up within you. "He basically threatened me a few days ago about Papyrus, he's always glaring at me, and not to mention the conversation about me I obviously interrupted yesterday."

"He threatened you?" Toriel gasped, you continued on with your rant- the anger you felt at the small skeleton fuelling the words.

"I tried my best to be nice to him, and when I make one fuck up he suddenly has this vendetta for me? I mean, I apologised and everything and yet that wasn't enough. I feel so bad for taking out my anger on Papyrus, not that it was entirely my fault since I was having a panic attack-"

"My child," Toriel interrupted you, causing you to breathe in heavily and exhale- the anger dissipating quickly, leaving you feeling empty. You were silently glad to see that Toriel didn't seem angry at you, if anything she looked worried.

"You should have mentioned Sans' behaviour earlier, although I understand why you may have been cautious in doing so…" Toriel sighed, and went to sit beside you, placing a comforting hand on your shoulder. "Sans may be a close friend to me, family even, but that sort of behaviour is unacceptable. I won't lie to you, it is likely Sans is very wary of you, he always has been with humans, even if he tries to hide that with his laid back personality, with perhaps Frisk as the only exception to his distrust."

"You… you won't mention this to him, right?" You asked quietly, causing Toriel to tut and squeeze you into a hug. You leaned into the embrace, feeling quite secure in her warm hold.

"My child, I can promise you that Sans will not hurt you," Toriel said, she sounded so sure that you almost believed her. "I would like to talk to him about his behaviour; I think you've shown you can be trusted. After all, if you were like the few human extremists- you wouldn't have stayed with us, or shown us the kindness and openness like you have… perhaps you and Sans should talk through this animosity?"

"I'd rather not…" You mumbled into Toriel's shoulder, causing her to chuckle.

"Now now, Sans is harmless… I promise." Toriel said, and you sighed in defeat. You pulled away from Toriel's hold, and sent her a small smile- it came out more as a grimace.

"Hm… is that the time already?" Toriel mused to herself, glancing towards the clock on the wall. You saw that it was 7:57am, and you already wanted to go to bed. "I must leave now, if I am to make it for the meeting…"

"…meeting?"

"Both Asgore and I are going to try to overturn this clearly discriminatory law," Toriel explained, and stood. "We are to meet with the mayor and his council, and hopefully convince them to revaluate their decision. I shouldn't be gone for very long; if the negotiations go well I should be back by this evening."

"Well… I hope you convince them," You said, standing as well. You followed as Toriel walked towards the front door, you felt inexplicably worried.

"Yes, I hope so too…" Toriel sighed, slipping into a pair of large boots and a coat. She turned to you with a warm smile. "(y/n)… I hope you considered my offer of staying?"

You smiled.

"Yeah, I have…" You said, looking down to your bare feet. "I want… I want to stay, if that's alright with you?"

"Oh, of course it is my child!" Toriel said happily, wrapping you into another hug. The motherly goat monster almost squeezing the life out of you, you could only grin at the positive response. "I am so glad you want to stay, this might sound so cheesy… but I already view you as one of my own children! I'm an old sap, I must admit…"

You swallowed heavily at her words, feeling a sudden rush of emotion. It was an ugly mixture of confusion and happiness; you could feel the threatening rush of tears.

You couldn't remember much of your actual mother, being too young when she passed. You never had experienced true motherly affection before, so meeting someone as caring as Toriel, who wanted to give you that needed affection.

It was hard to even express the gratitude you felt for that.

"Be good… and make sure the others behave too." Toriel had said, full of mirth, a polar opposite to how she was a few moments before. You nodded, smiling in encouragement as Toriel opened the door and left with a wave.

Once she was gone, your smile fell.

You couldn't help but feel worry, after all the talk of Monsters going missing, and the growing tension between both Monsters and Humans in general, you would have preferred Toriel to stay home.

Home…

Looking around the homely living room, you thought you ought to start seeing the place as your home. It was a weird sensation, knowing that you were planning on staying here despite your earlier reservations.

You were hopeful… even with the impending doom of possible segregation forcing you out of your new found home.

It would take a body bag to force you away from your family.


	8. Outing

**Author note- Look, a chapter that ISN'T a month late! Isn't that great?**

(Possible triggers- spiders?)

-x-

 **Chapter Eight**

Outing

"GOOD MORNING (y/n)!"

Papyrus' cheery voice caught your attention from where you sat on the sofa; as you turned to face your crush, you couldn't help but smile at the sight of him. Papyrus was fully dressed in a pair of smart slacks and a flattering orange button up, it was an unusual sight.

You wondered why he was dressed so well.

"Morning Papyrus," You greeted him with a yawn, trying to ignore the not so innocent thoughts that ran through your somewhat exhausted head.

Who knew skeletons looked great in slacks?

"Um… Toriel just left an hour ago by the way, she won't be back until the evening." You said, nearly forgetting to mention the departure of Toriel. "I think she's trying to overturn that new law thing."

"OH… WELL I SHALL INFORM THE OTHERS ABOUT THAT!" Papyrus said with a nod, the skeleton thankfully unaware of your heated stare. "…WOULD YOU LIKE SOME BREAKFAST?"

"Sure."

You nodded, blinking out of your stupor as Papyrus entered the kitchen- you decided to follow, settling yourself on one of the bar stools by the kitchen island. A plate of steaming spaghetti was placed in front of you almost immediately, and you couldn't say you were that surprised by the choice of dish.

"So… do you have work today?" You asked. Trying to make some small talk as you twirled spaghetti around your fork, Papyrus was happily digging into his own plate, and you silently wondered how a skeleton digested food.

"AS MUCH AS I LOVE HARD WORK AND BEING PRODUCTIVE, I UNFORTUNATELY HAVEN'T HAD A JOB YET ON THE SURFACE- ALTHOUGH I HAVE TRIED VERY VALIANTLY TO GET ONE!" Papyrus explained with a disheartened sigh, you couldn't help but notice he had some tomato sauce on his cheekbone. You stared at the red glob as he spoke. "…WHY DO YOU ASK?"

"Huh?" You said dumbly, realizing that Papyrus was looking at you as if he asked a question. It took you a minute to recollect your thoughts, still staring at the red sauce on Papyrus' cheekbone. "Um… I just thought you were, since you're wearing those fancy clothes."

"OH… THESE?" Papyrus said, with a gesture to his clothes. "I THOUGHT I'D WEAR SOMETHING NICE FOR TODAY- NOT THAT MY BATTLE ARMOR IS ANYTHING BUT! I WAS PLANNING ON GOING TO THE NEARBY MARKET TO DO SOME SHOPPING… HM… W-WOULD YOU CARE TO JOIN ME?"

"Sure… sounds good." You nodded, not really registering what you were agreeing with. You were still so focused on Papyrus' cheek, and he eventually noticed your pointed stare.

"IS SOMETHING WRONG…?" Papyrus asked, and he reached up to rub his cheekbone- the wrong one, you noticed. Without thinking, you reached out to rub the stain off yourself, rubbing your thumb against the smooth skeletal cheek.

You froze.

"(y/n)?"

Papyrus had said something, but in the haze of your mind it sounded so quiet and muffled. All you could think of is how surprisingly smooth Papyrus' face was, and how enjoyable it was rubbing his cheek.

Eventually, your brain finally started functioning again- you flinched away from his face as if you were struck with lighting.

"S-sorry," You said, almost choking in the intensity of the moment. "You had… some sauce…"

"NO NEED TO APOLOGISE (y/n), THANK YOU." Papyrus said, sounding almost wary. You felt like an idiot for the way you reacted, hoping you didn't freak Papyrus out too much by your behaviour. You looked down to your still quite full plate, not wanting to see Papyrus' disgust.

However, he just continued on as if the moment didn't occur. You were quite thankful for that, and you focused on devouring the rest of the meal in front of you.

"DID YOU ENJOYED THE SPAGHETTI?" Papyrus asked with a hopeful smile, as he took your now empty plate, taking the dishes to the sink to wash up. You stared as he rolled up his orange sleeves, practically ogling his arm.

"As always, it was lovely." You said politely, smiling when Papyrus practically preened at the compliment. You thought he was utterly adorable, so you urged your mind to be clear of any impure thoughts.

"WELL, I SHALL WAKE UP THE OTHERS NOW; IT WOULD NOT BE GOOD FOR THEM TO SLEEP IN SO LATE!" Papyrus stated, once the dished were cleaned and sparkling.

You couldn't help but feel confused, as it was only nine in the morning, and a Saturday.

But, you had a feeling that Papyrus viewed that as "late."

"Oh okay," You said simply, watching as Papyrus went upstairs to wake the others. You thought you ought to get dressed now, seeing how Papyrus wanted you to join him on his outing.

You weren't entirely sure on how you felt about going outside again, after the attack you felt quite paranoid about the prospect. The thought of bumping into Cameron, or any other thug was a terrifying prospect.

But you knew Papyrus could protect you.

Entering your now _permanent_ room, you went to the wooden chest of drawers to grab some clothes. You looked through the neat piles for something nice; feeling the urge to wear something other than a plain t-shirt and jeans.

You knew you wanted to impress Papyrus, even if he didn't see you in a romantic way. You knew it was naïve, but you thought that by dressing nicely- he might be able to view you in such a way.

It was a pathetic plan, you thought.

Eventually, you managed to find a pretty white sundress among the casual and quite unflattering outfits. It was shorter than what you usually wore, but a glance out the bedroom window told you it was quite a warm day today- _unusually warm for springtime,_ you mused.

Undressing out of your pyjamas, you slipped into the dress. You were glad to see it flattered your body type, and with a blush you noticed how revealing it was… especially in the cleavage zone.

 _Should I wear something else?_ You thought, but looking through the rest of your clothes, you couldn't find anything as pretty as the dress. Despite your insecurity, you decided you would wear it.

Maybe it was time you got out of your comfort zone, for once.

Approaching the standing mirror in the corner of the room, you grabbed a brush and went to sort out your terrible bed hair. It wasn't very long before the messy tangles were now neat, and you considered how to style your hair… or to not style it at all.

With a shrug, you decided to let it stay down and natural, after all, you didn't want to seem too eager.

"(y/n)?" Papyrus called out from the other side of the door, knocking lightly a few times. "ARE YOU READY?"

"Just a second," You called out, and with one last look at your reflection, you went to open the bedroom door. You were face to face with Papyrus, who just stared down at you.

"You okay?" You asked with a smile, as you turned to find some shoes. You decided that the simple white trainers Toriel gave you would go well with the outfit; you bent down to tie them on.

When you turned back to Papyrus, his cheeks were glowing bright orange.

"Whoa…" You said in awe, wondering why Papyrus was glowing. "Um, Papyrus… you okay there?"

"Y-YES, I AM PERFECTLY ALRIGHT!" Papyrus said, his voice sounding lower than usual. You stared at him in confusion. "A-ARE YOU READY TO GO?"

"Yes…?" You trailed off, following Papyrus as he walked quite briskly to the front door. You couldn't understand why he was acting so weirdly, it was only a moment ago that he was his usual self.

"Hey! Have fun, you _lovebirds_."

Turning your worried gaze from Papyrus' back and to the couch, you saw Undyne, Alphys, Sans and Frisk. Undyne had said the teasing remark, looking strangely pleased. Alphys wore a small smile, slightly hidden behind a small yellow claw. Frisk was grinning, and gave you two thumbs up.

Sans' expression was completely unreadable.

You stared at them, while Papyrus practically freaked out at Undyne's suggestive tone.

"UH, I CAN ASSURE YOU UNDYNE, THAT NEITHER (y/n) OR I ARE ANY SORT OF FEATHERED ANIMAL… OR…" Papyrus stuttered out, flushing orange again. "B-BUT WE SHALL HAVE AN ENJOYABLE TIME, THANK YOU."

And with that, Papyrus ushered you out of the front door.

"Well, that was weird." You stated plainly, looking back to Papyrus. You couldn't help but feel concerned with his unusual erratic behaviour, even now, he looked nervous. "Papyrus, are you sure you're alright? You seem… nervous?"

"OH, WELL…" Papyrus began with a small laugh, nervously rubbing the back of his skull. "I REALLY AM ALRIGHT, I'M… I'M JUST REALLY EXCITED FOR OUR OUTING TOGETHER!"

"If you say so," You said, amused.

You then looked around the front of the house, both you and Papyrus were still stood on the patio- the rest of the front was practically a large garden with how big it was, there were many large fruit trees and colourful flowers dotted around; the only accessible part of the front garden was the stone path that led to a wooden white gate.

There were many houses in the small cul-de-sac; it looked like a friendly enough neighbourhood.

Friendlier than what you were used to, that's for sure.

"We're just going shopping, right?" You asked, as both you and Papyrus walked towards the gate.

"WELL… YES, BUT I WAS HOPING I COULD SHOW YOU AROUND THE TOWN?" Papyrus said, looking to you with a hopeful expression. You found you couldn't deny the cute skeleton, so you nodded.

Papyrus practically beamed.

"I CAN ASSURE THAT THIS OUTING WILL BE PLEASANT, AS THE TOWN IS SO!" Papyrus said happily, as you followed him. As you looked around, you realized you've never been to this part of the town, ever. So you were completely lost without Papyrus' guide, with that thought, you inched closer to him. "ALL THE MONSTERS ARE VERY FRIENDLY, AND THERE'S LOTS OF FUN STUFF TO DO TOO!"

As Papyrus listed the various fun activities (most of which were things you usually found in most towns- fairs, parks, whatever you could think of really.) you surveyed the area, it seemed that you were in the outskirts of the town, and in a suburban area as only houses surrounded the two of you.

You noticed that the looming figure of Mt. Ebbott wasn't very far away from this part of town, its looming figure visible in the distance; you inhaled a heavy breath at the realization that not far away, was the place you lost Alex.

 _Calm down…_ you thought, trying to breathe through your mini-panic.

Another thing you noticed, whilst trying not to freak out, that there wasn't a human in sight. Only Monsters of all shapes and sizes were out and about, they seemed friendly enough, as Papyrus promised, most gave you and the skeleton a warm smile as you passed, some even waving and calling out greetings.

You smiled back tentatively.

* * *

Eventually, the many rows of houses began to dwindle, and bright market stalls began to pop up in their stead.

Papyrus had lead you to what looked like a giant farmers' market in the middle of the square, you thought there had to be at least 200 stalls stationed down the street. There were large groups of monsters, and even a couple humans bustling around the market.

The large crowd made you gulp.

"SHALL WE BEGIN THE SHOPPING?" Papyrus had suggested, completely unaware of your internal panic, which was verging on a full blown panic attack.

Even the sight of a crowd was enough to make your heart jump.

"Wait!"

You burst out as Papyrus went to walk towards the market; he turned back to you with a worried expression, finally picking up on your fear. "I… I'm not very good with crowds… sorry."

"SORRY?" Papyrus repeated, and shook his head. "DO NOT BE SORRY (y/n), I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN YOU MIGHT NOT LIKE THE BIG CROWD! AFTER YOUR BIG ORDEAL IT WAS OBVIOUS REALLY, BUT DON'T FRET! THE GREAT PAPYRUS SHALL FIX THIS MATTER!"

It took you a moment to realize Papyrus had grabbed your hand, holding it within his own. You stared at him with reddened cheeks, the feeling of bone on flesh was peculiar, but in no way uncomfortable.

Papyrus smiled, although it now looked nervous. You swallowed, finding the strength to smile back. His touch genuinely helped calm you down, as you focused on the feeling of your joined hands- rather than the busy bustle of the crowd.

"Y-yeah, this helps… thank you." You said, allowing Papyrus to lead you towards the crowd. The closer you got, the closer you inched towards the skeleton.

Soon, you were practically pressed against his side.

Papyrus wasn't disturbed by the closeness, as he walked to each stall with purpose- grabbing any ingredients that he needed and paying with his gold. Most of the stalls didn't interest you much, but a few did- some had some interesting trinkets and knick-knacks.

Whilst Papyrus made his purchases at one table, you found yourself staring at a sleek, silvery white necklace on one of the tables next to it; you thought it was quite pretty. You didn't think of yourself as much of a jewellery person, but something about the necklace was drawing you in.

"You interested hun?" Looking up, you realized that a rabbit monster was looking at you expectantly. One of the market stall sellers, you realized. "It's a beautiful piece, made of pure crystal and infused with magic."

"…magic?" You questioned, and you were fully aware of the Monsters magical abilities- but the fact they could infuse jewellery with it was quite fascinating.

"Only 100 gold, and for you I'd even throw in a cinnamon bun," The rabbit monster stated with a smile, and whilst the offer seemed reasonable, you didn't have any money, let alone any _gold_.

Before you could decline the offer, feeling quite awkward for having to do so, Papyrus noticed your interaction- and your interest in the magical necklace.

"DON'T WORRY ABOUT THAT (y/n)!" Papyrus grinned, handing over a pouch to the rabbit monster vendor. "HERE YOU GO!"

You watched with wide eyes as the necklace and a wrapped bun was handed to you, it was almost impossible not to gape as Papyrus led you through the rest of the market, seeming nonplussed by his purchase.

"Papyrus, you really didn't have to!" You said, feeling a rise of guilt. "That was… a lot of money."

Papyrus stopped in his tracks, causing you to bump into him- but you were easily steadied by the skeleton.

"WELL, OF COURSE I HAD TO!" Papyrus said, sounding almost confused by your statement. "I SAW THAT YOU LIKED THAT NECKLACE, AND I WANTED TO TREAT YOU!"

"Oh…" You trailed off, unsure of what to say. Whilst you felt guilty, as you always did when someone went out of their way to buy you something, you also felt extremely flattered.

"Well, thank you. I love it." You smiled, genuinely happy for receiving such a pretty gift.

You were figuring out how to repay the kind skeleton, with no money or gold, it seemed like a difficult quest.

Papyrus only grinned, leading you away from the bustling market. You suddenly became aware that the two of you still held hands, and that the skeleton opted out of his usual red gloves.

You couldn't help but stare down at the entwined limbs, his bright white bone a contrast to your fleshy skin, his digits felt slim but silky smooth compared to yours- they held onto your hand firmly, but you were so sure if you applied any pressure that they would break, that thought alone made you keep your grasp light.

"HM, I THINK THAT IS EVERYTHING FOR THE GROCERYS!" Papyrus declared loudly, breaking you out of your rushing thoughts. You looked up to him with a relieved expression, no more shopping meant fewer crowds.

You hoped.

"Are we going home?" You asked, silently hoping it wasn't the case.

You really wanted to spend some more quality time with the skeleton, without any overprotective brothers or teasing besties to get in the way.

"AH, DID YOU WANT TO GO BACK ALREADY?" Papyrus said, looking almost disappointed. "I THOUGHT WE COULD GRAB SOME LUNCH!"

"Lunch would be good," You said quickly, not wanting the skeleton to think you already wanted to go back. That was far from the truth.

Despite your earlier reservation about going outside again, you were surprisingly enjoying your time. Papyrus' presence seemed to calm any panic you may have had, and it helped that the area seemed so friendly and safe, compared to the inner city where you once roamed.

You found it very ironic that the Monsters were friendlier people than your own, reminding you of how ignorant humans were. You couldn't imagine any of the Monsters you met so far hurting anyone, it didn't seem like them to do such a thing.

"So, where are we going?" You asked curiously, walking beside Papyrus as he led you to wherever he wanted to eat. You could hear the tell-tale signs of hunger from your stomach.

"NYEH HEH HEH, IT'S A SURPRISE!" Papyrus said with a laugh, hearing it made you giggle slightly, feeling quite excited for the surprise.

"Is it a _good_ surprise?" You teased, squeezing Papyrus' hand as you smiled up to him. For whatever reason, this caused the skeleton to look away- his cheeks glowing faintly.

 _Hm, that's strange…,_ you thought.

"W-WELL OF COURSE IT IS!" Papyrus said confidently, recovering from his brief pause. "I CHOOSE ONLY THE GREATEST FOOD PLACES TO DINE, UNLIKE MY DEAR BROTHER WHO WOULD RATHER EAT GREASY BURGERS AT GRILLBYS!"

Your smile faded slightly at the mention of Sans, and the memories of your conversation with Toriel resurfaced. You didn't quite like the idea of confronting Sans, but you knew deep down a serious conversation was needed between you two.

"HERE WE ARE!" Papyrus joyous voice brought you out of your thoughts, and you followed his gaze to a small café, in a corner of the big cobbled courtyard you two stood in.

It wasn't a normal café either, you noticed with some surprise. The entire exterior was decorated in bright purples and reds, cobwebs carefully covered some of the front windows and around the entrance to make an odd yet creative pattern. A large purple sign was hung above the entrance, bright cobwebs spelling out "MUFFETS."

It was… unusual.

"Oh, it looks… nice." You said, trying to not sound unsure of your own words. You tried to have an open mind about the place, after all, Papyrus assured you of its "greatness."

As Papyrus led you towards the café, you took in the sight- you had a feeling this café was run by a Monster, considering the very creative design. You wondered whether the cobwebs were real, and when you passed them- you swore you saw a purple spider scuttle across a web.

Once you entered the café- a bell signalling your arrival, an aroma of freshly baked bread and pastry hit your nose. You breathed in the homely scent, relaxing almost immediately. The interior of the café was similar to the front, purples and reds taking up the majority of the colour scheme- cobwebs happily dancing along the ceiling.

Round tables were dotted around the café, a few booths sat at the back. There were a couple Monsters already sat down at some of the tables and eating, your mouth watered at the sight of their pastry meals.

As both you and Papyrus approached the front counter, the kitchen door behind it opened.

"Good morning, dearies!"

You tried not to stare too much as a Spider Monster smiled at you from behind the counter, wearing a chef's hat and apron. You assumed she was a spider- from the amount of limbs and eyes she had. You manage to repress your instinctive shudder, instead smiling politely at her.

"GOOD MORNING MUFFET!" Papyrus greeted the spider lady, not picking up on your slight discomfort. But it was unjustified discomfort, you thought. "TABLE FOR TWO, PLEASE!"

"Of course Papyrus, follow me this way." Muffet said pleasantly, leading the two of you to a snug booth table in the back. Muffet handed you a menu each and you noticed she stared at you little as she did so, smiling in a slightly unsettling way. "Ahuhu~ so who's your little human friend?"

"OH, THAT'S (y/n)!" Papyrus said happily, you reached out to shake one of Muffet's hands- thankfully she saved you the confusion of which one by already extending hers. Her grip was firm and surprisingly soft.

"Um… nice to meet you," You said, with a small smile. You tried your best to squash the nervousness you felt, as a panic attack wouldn't be a very good first impression.

"Likewise deary~ now I must go check on the kitchen," Muffet said, turning to leave. She paused for a moment, glancing towards us with a mischievous smile. "I must say, you two make an _adorable couple_."

Muffet giggled, quickly leaving before I could correct her. I looked to Papyrus with reddened cheeks, wondering why everyone thought we were _together_. It was a nice thought, but it almost seemed like the world was cruelly teasing me with the impossible possibility.

Papyrus seemed a little nervous, so I tried to think of something to say to distract him from the comment- after all it must be so embarrassing for him to be mistaken for _my_ date.

"So…" I began nervously, glancing down at the menu- I wasn't entirely taking in the words, too distracted by my nerves. "W-what does the "Great Papyrus" recommend?"

"W-WELL THE SPIDER CROISSANTS ARE QUITE LOVELY IF I SAY SO MYSELF!" Papyrus said, regaining his composure. To your relief, he didn't seem that upset by the earlier comment- the opposite really, if his bright expression was anything to go by. "THE CIDER IS QUITE DIVINE ALSO!"

"Sounds good to me," You said with a nod, laying the menu flat on the table. Not a moment later, a purple spider descended from one of the webs on the ceiling- you yet again swallowed down your discomfort.

"TWO SPIDER CROISSAINTS, AND TWO SPIDER CIDERS PLEASE," Papyrus said to the spider, and you realized with some wonder that the small purple spider was a waiter. The spider then climbed up the web and left to tell Muffet your order- you presumed.

The café was very odd, but not in a entirely bad way.

Now both you and Papyrus were left to wait for your food to arrive, the two of you fidgeting slightly. You tried to think of something interesting to say- wanting to fill in the gap of conversation to prevent the mood from becoming awkward.

Papyrus beat you to it, unexpectedly.

"I MUST SAY (y/n)… YOU LOOK REALLY PRETTY TODAY!" Papyrus said with a nervous smile, his words causing you to stare in disbelief. You didn't expect such a bold compliment from the skeleton; you couldn't help but blush intensely- feeling your stomach flutter.

"T-thanks," You said with a nervous laugh, looking down to your hands that were clenched tightly around one another. You looked up to Papyrus with a shy expression, deciding to be bold yourself. "That outfit really compliments you, makes you look more handsome."

You looked away, willing your red cheeks to cool down. You couldn't quite understand why Papyrus would say such a thing; you didn't even know whether he was being entirely truthful. You always struggled to accept kind words and compliments.

But when you looked to the tall adorable skeleton, you knew he wouldn't lie to you so easily. It was hard to imagine Papyrus saying anything but the truth.

"YOU REALLY THINK SO?" Papyrus said, and you stared as his cheeks started to faintly glow orange. "I MEAN, I KNEW THIS OUTFIT WOULD LOOK DASHING, AS ALL OF MY OUTFITS DO!"

You smiled, finding Papyrus' confidence to be quite adorable. Before you could say anything else, two purple spiders carrying quite large plates (especially in relation to their size) dropped down to your table.

"Thanks," You said to the spiders, feeling quite odd for doing so. But it would be rude not to thank them, and whilst you lived most of your life homeless, you still had manners.

The conversation died down for a little while, as both you and Papyrus dug into your spider croissants and cider. The pastry was delicious, perfectly textured and sweet. The cider went down smoothly, the yellow liquid cold and sweet.

"Honestly, I don't think I've ever tasted food as good as this," You commented, after taking a healthy gulp of the cider. Feeling very refreshed physically _and_ mentally. "Now I think about it, the food you and Toriel make is really good also… you Monsters just must be better at cooking than us Humans."

Papyrus practically preened at your compliment, a reaction you found quite endearing.

"WELL, MONSTER FOOD IS ALSO MADE WITH MAGIC!" Papyrus explained, and you were somewhat surprised by the information. You didn't realize that Monsters used their magic for cooking as well. "THE MAGIC ALLOWS THE FOOD TO BE DIGESTED BY ANY SORT OF MONSTER, AS WE DON'T HAVE A DIGESTIVE SYSTEM, LIKE HUMANS. THE MAGIC ENABLES OUR SOULS TO CONVERT THE FOOD INTO ENERGY- TO USE FOR HEALING, OR MORE MAGIC!"

"Wow, really?" You said, quite impressed. "But… how can humans eat Monster food? Do we digest it normally?"

"WELL, HUMANS ALSO HAVE SOULS- SO THEY ALSO CONVERT THE MONSTER FOOD INTO MAGICAL ENERGY TO USE FOR HEALING!" Papyrus said, and you stared in some surprise. You supposed that if Monsters could have souls, that it would make sense for Humans to have them too.

You started to realize how little you knew about Monsters and their Magic in general.

"That's pretty amazing," You said simply, sipping at the cider.

You swore you could feel a strange tingling in your chest when you focused hard enough; it was an odd yet refreshing feeling. One you presumed was due to the magic.

"Honestly, I'm quite surprised you haven't managed to snag a job up here yet, with your magic and all…" You then commented, hoping it wasn't too rude to say. "It would be useful for a lot of jobs…"

"NYEH… THAT'S VERY TRUE!" Papyrus nodded, not seeming offended by your words. "BUT A LOT OF HUMANS STILL HAVE YET TO GET ACCUSTOMED TO US MONSTERS, SO IT CAN BE QUITE HARD TO GET A JOB ON THE SURFACE. BUT IT IS NO PROBLEM, TORIEL PROVIDES WELL WITH HER TEACHING AT THE LOCAL SCHOOL. EVEN SANS HAS A FEW PART-TIME JOBS- TO MY SURPRISE!"

You noticed with some unease that Papyrus' expression dropped slightly at the mention of his brother, it was a very slight but noticeable change. You were concerned at such a reaction, so without thinking, you reached out to grasp one of Papyrus' hands.

"Is everything alright?" You asked, and Papyrus paused in thought before shaking his head. The skeleton leaned forward slightly, looking worried.

"I AM QUITE CONCERNED FOR SANS," Papyrus said worriedly, you squeezed his hand in reassurance. "WHILST IT IS A GOOD THING THAT HE WORKS, I'M STARTING TO THINK HE'S NOT BEING ENTIRELY TRUTHFUL WITH ME."

"HE IS ALWAYS STAYING OUT SO LATE, AND RETURNING VERY EARLY IN THE MORNINGS. I WOULDN'T THINK MUCH OF IT, BUT I'VE NOTICED HIS CHANGE OF MOOD- HE SEEMS MORE WITHDRAWN, STRESSED, NOT LIKE HIS USUAL SELF AT ALL."

"Maybe he's just having a few stressful days at work?" You suggested, not sure what to think. You haven't really noticed anything strange with Sans, mainly because you'd rather avoid him. But you knew it must be serious if his brother was worried about him.

"POSSIBLY…" Papyrus sighed, looking saddened. You thought it didn't suit his usually upbeat self. "BUT STRANGELY ENOUGH, THIS BEHAVIOUR OF HIS BEGAN AS SOON AS THE DISAPPEARANCES BEGAN HAPPENING…"

"Disappearances?"

"A FEW MONSTERS HAVE BEEN DISAPPEARING EVERY WEEK OR SO FOR THE PAST TWO MONTHS," Papyrus explained with a sad frown, and you gasped slightly in remembrance- recalling it from earlier broadcasts and news. "EVER SINCE THEN, SANS HAS BEEN ODDLY ABSENT FROM HOME. I'M WORRIED."

"Why don't you talk to him about it today?" You suggested with a small smile, although it was strained with sadness. "Surely he'll tell you the truth if you ask him? You're his brother after all."

"PERHAPS…" Papyrus hummed, and before more could be said- Muffet came to your table, breaking the solemn mood.

"HELLO DEARYS, I HOPE YOU ENJOYED YOUR FOOD?" Muffet asked while picking up your empty plates. You nodded, Papyrus' grinning in response.

"YES MUFFET, IT WAS A VERY ENJOYABLE MEAL, THANKYOU!"

Papyrus then paid for the food, bringing out a handful of gold coins to hand to the Spider Monster. Muffet walked away with a friendly wave, and you looked towards Papyrus as he stood.

"SHALL WE HEAD BACK?" Papyrus suggested with a smile, you were glad to see him cheered up, if not slightly.

"Sure," You nodded.

Following the skeleton, the two of you made your way out of the café. The once busy street was practically empty; something you thought was quite odd. Even the atmosphere felt weird.

"Can you feel that?" You asked quietly. Papyrus stilled, also noticing the heaviness of the air. "Is it usually so…?"

As you glanced warily around the empty street, a sight caught your eye, a sight that brought an instant feeling of nausea, panic and fear into your heart.

… _Cameron._


	9. Closer

**Author note** Wow, it's been a bit of a long update- but this chapter is longer than the others! So enjoy the long chapter, A LOT happens. I hope the wait was worth it ;)

 **(Possible triggers- Gang violence, assault on minors, attempted kidnapping, mentions and mild descriptions of drug use, smuggling and mention of forced prostitution.)**

-x-

 **Chapter Nine**

Your rugged, blond ex-boyfriend stood conspicuously at the mouth of one of the alleyways in the empty street, he was leant casually against the wall puffing on a cigarette- looking quite bored.

Cameron didn't seem to notice you or Papyrus beside the Spider Café, so you tugged the skeleton back slightly, placing a finger on your lips to signal him to keep quiet.

Thankfully, Papyrus understood.

A short moment later, two of Cameron's lackeys appeared from around the corner, you assumed they were his lackeys from their rough attire and general air of cockiness. The two broad thugs were carrying a large brown sack between them, and you noticed with shock that whatever was inside was moving.

"Is that…?" You gasped quietly, fearing the worst yet not knowing what to expect. Papyrus stiffened beside you, placing a placating hand on your shoulder. For his or your comfort, you weren't sure.

Cameron and the two thugs spoke quietly- you couldn't hear from where you were, and then they slinked into the dark alley, with the moving sack.

You looked over to a determined looking Papyrus, your fear spiking.

"STAY HERE (y/n)… I WILL FIND OUT WHAT'S HAPPENING." Papyrus said confidently, and as he went to approach the alley, you reached out to grab his hand.

"No!" You said fearfully, and with a deep breath, you tried to control your panic. "…I'll come too; I can't leave you alone with them, Cameron especially. Maybe it's not as bad as it looks anyway…"

That was a stupid thought, and you knew it.

"WELL, IF YOU INSIST…" Papyrus said with a frown, looking quite worried. You gave him a smile, trying to be reassuring… it probably failed.

Papyrus turned to face you fully; he reached out to gently stroke a thumb across your cheek. It was an intimate gesture, one that made you blush and gape like a fool.

"I PROMISE I WON'T LET THEM HURT YOU AGAIN," Papyrus said, and he sounded so serious and sure you almost believed him.

"…thanks." You said dumbly, and you both stared at each other for a moment. In your perfect world, you would've reached forward and kissed him.

…but you were too much of a coward to do such a thing.

The two of you cautiously made your way to the alleyway entrance, Papyrus taking up the front. You both peered into the dim alley, but couldn't see anyone. It seemed that Cameron and his thugs went further down.

As quietly as possible, you and Papyrus began walking deeper into the alley. You had to be careful to not trip on any trash that littered the cobbled ground, lest you alert Cameron to your presence.

Each cautious step you took, you could feel your chest constrict, breathing became harder and it took all of your willpower to not panic.

After a few minutes of quiet and tense walking, you began to hear voices ahead.

"This was a good catch boys, the boss will be very happy."

Cameron's voice, it sounded so close, that you almost cried out in fear. If it wasn't for Papyrus' comforting presence, you think you would've had a panic attack by now… or three.

Cameron and his two thugs were now in view as you and Papyrus reached the dead-end of the alley, you could make out their forms in the shadows. The large brown bag they carried was on the floor with the contents visible.

You almost gasped aloud when you realized that there were Rabbit Monsters stuffed inside it.

The three Monsters- which you realized with horror were children, were tied up with thick rope, and seemed to be unconscious.

…you hoped.

Papyrus' stiffened in response, you saw that the skeleton was looking at the scene in complete shock, his usual smile replaced by a horrified look. You mirrored his expression, unable to react for a moment.

Stepping back in fear, your foot nudged an empty soda can- causing it to hit against one of the alley walls. You winced as Cameron looked towards the sound, and now finally noticing you.

"Oh?" Cameron said, looking surprised to see you. His surprise was soon replaced by sheer cockiness, the blond smirking at the sight of you and Papyrus.

"(y/n), it's so lovely to see you again," Cameron drawled, gesturing to his thugs to pick up the bag again, you noticed with some relief that the Rabbit children were beginning to wake up. "Last time I saw you, you were dying in a pool of your own blood."

"Thanks for that," You retorted with a frown, causing Cameron to laugh. Your frown deepened further.

"Well, I didn't manage to finish you off, thanks to your friend here." Cameron mock sighed, his piercing grey gaze on Papyrus. You inched closer to the skeleton, not liking the look on your exes face. "A shining knight in armour, your hero… I'm hurt; you know how jealous I get."

"HUMAN, PLEASE RELEASE THOSE CHILDREN, AND LET THEM GO ON THEIR WAY." Papyrus spoke up, with an almost grave expression on his face. Cameron chuckled in response, slowly walking towards us.

Once Cameron was within a few inches away from Papyrus, he leered.

"Hm, what would you do if I said no?"

You stared, feeling quite fearful at Cameron's blatant confidence. You knew him too well to think he couldn't hurt Papyrus.

"I DO NOT WANT TO FIGHT," Papyrus said, and didn't flinch when Cameron laughed loudly in his face. You inched closer to the two, wanting Papyrus to be as far away from Cameron as possible. "JUST RELEASE THOSE CHILDREN, AND WE WILL SPARE YOU."

"Spare?" Cameron snorted, you noticed with dismay that he began to reach behind- for something in his pocket. "You should be lucky if I-"

"No!"

You yelled, and pushed Papyrus away as Cameron brought out his pocket knife. Your sudden movement caused you to crash into Cameron, the two of you falling to the hard ground. The knife clanged loudly against the floor, sliding away from you and Cameron.

Cameron's thugs hesitated for a moment, but quickly recovered.

But as they went to help Cameron, a wall of blue glowing bone surrounded them. You barely paid attention as Cameron went to punch you, his fist sailing inches away from your cheek as you rolled away in time.

"Fucking bitch!" Cameron shouted angrily, and you went to grab the knife. Before you could, Cameron had grabbed a fistful of your hair, tugging you back painfully. You felt his hands wrap around your neck, squeezing painfully.

But then they were gone.

You gasped out, looking back in shock as Cameron was enveloped in a bright blue glow, and hovering in the air.

"DO. NOT. TOUCH. HER."

Papyrus looked and sounded furious, and you realized that he was using magic to trap the thugs, and to keep Cameron in the air. You stared as the skeleton approached you, helping you up gently.

"ARE YOU OKAY?" Papyrus asked, sounding so concerned. You swallowed, wincing at the brief pain that followed. But you nodded, turning back to face Cameron.

Cameron looked angry, and unable to move at all. He stared at Papyrus with a fierce expression, but he also looked oddly impressed.

"…blue magic?" Cameron mused. "I haven't encountered a strong Monster like you yet, boss would definitely be interested in you…"

"Boss?" You questioned, confused. The last you remembered, Cameron was a lone wolf sort- having a crew that he was the boss of. You wondered what changed. "Is that why you're kidnapping those children?"

"Not just them, but every Monster I can find." Cameron corrected, sounding smug. You glared at him, feeling disgusted. "But don't think I'll tell you anything more, I'm not fucking stupid."

"Well, you can tell the rest to the police then." You sniffed, your words causing Cameron to laugh again. It was beginning to grate on your nerves.

"Police?" Cameron repeated, still chortling. "Trust me babe, the police won't be able to help. They won't want to."

"Don't call me babe," You growled out, crossing your arms. "…but wait… you mean they're in on it too?"

Cameron only smirked in response, neither denying nor confirming your question. You didn't want to take that chance, so you turned to Papyrus.

"ARE WE TO RELEASE THEM?" Papyrus asked with a frown, not looking fond of such a thing. You shrugged, unsure of what to do.

"I don't know…" You sighed, but your attention was brought back to the tied up Monster children, they were fully awake now- staring helplessly at you and Papyrus. Thankfully, Papyrus had separated them from the two thugs, away from the bone wall. "…but our priority is returning those children to their family."

"YES, I AGREE!" Papyrus nodded, and you went to untie the small rabbit Monsters. As you approached cautiously with a hopefully comforting smile, you couldn't help but inspect them.

They were so small that you figured they couldn't have been any older than seven or eight. One of the rabbits was even smaller, a toddler; you sent a deathly glare towards Cameron.

It was sickening that he would capture them; the thought of what could have happened to them was truly upsetting.

"It's okay now, you're safe." You said soothingly, as you reached to one of the shaking rabbits- beginning to untie the tight knot of the rope.

It didn't take long before all three of the rabbit children were free; they stood shakily- looking quite weak. They seemed less scared of you now, but they kept shooting terrified looks to Cameron and the thugs.

"We should go," You said to Papyrus, the skeleton nodded in agreement. "What are we going to do with them?"

You gestured to Cameron, and Papyrus glanced to the rope you discarded to the floor. You quickly caught on, and grabbed as much rope as you could.

"Let's do this."

-x-

"You're going to regret this, sweetheart."

Cameron sneered, from where he was tied up with the two thugs. You and Papyrus had made sure that the knots were extremely tight and hard to escape from; the trio wouldn't even be able to stand with how their legs were tied together uncomfortably.

You smiled.

"I sincerely doubt that; have fun trying to get out of this one Cameron." You said, and with a cheery wave you left the three in the alley. Papyrus followed, with the three rabbit children trailing behind him. The smallest rabbit stuck her tongue out towards them as you walked away.

Once you were back in the empty but lightly lit street, Papyrus turned to the children.

"ARE YOU HURT?" Papyrus asked the small rabbits, a patient smile on his face.

"N-no, we're okay." The tallest rabbit said, the other two clinging to his hands. He seemed to be the oldest, but still very young. "J-just a little achy…"

"What happened?" You asked quietly, curious to know how they got in such a predicament.

"Me and my sisters were visiting our Uncle at his shop," The eldest rabbit frowned, looking away while he spoke. "My littlest sister, Caramel, she went outside when we weren't looking. Instead of telling our Uncle, we just followed her. But we found her with those scary humans; they were stuffing her in a bag!"

The rabbits began to look upset again and the littlest, Caramel, was teary.

"YOU'RE SAFE NOW, THEY WON'T HURT YOU AGAIN!" Papyrus said softly, reaching down to give Caramel a hug- she clung onto the skeleton. Papyrus picked her up with ease, giving the other two a bright smile. "MY NAME IS PAPYRUS AND THIS IS (y/n), WHAT'S YOURS?"

"I'm Snowball, and this is Toffee." The boy, Snowball, said and gestured to his other sister. You thought their names were quite fitting to their looks, Snowball was a pure white rabbit, whilst his sisters were light brown- Toffee an even deeper brown than Caramel.

"WELL, IT IS UNFORTUNATE THAT WE MET IN SUCH HORRIBLE CIRCUMSTANCES, BUT IT IS GOOD TO MEET YOU!" Papyrus said, adjusting Caramel so she sat on his hip. The movement caused some white dust to rub on his orange shirt.

"What's that?" You asked, watching as Papyrus inspected the dust. His expression turned from cheerful to pure horror. "…Papyrus?"

"OH… OH NO…" Papyrus mumbled, sounding sad. "WERE YOU THE ONLY MONSTERS THEY TOOK?"

Snowball gulped, and shook his head.

"They… they had others," Snowball said, and began shaking again. "B-but they were older… and more p-powerful… they fought back…"

Toffee began to cry quietly, tightly hugging his brother for comfort. You gulped in discomfort, realizing what that dust meant.

"Oh my god…" You gasped quietly, shocked to the core. This blatant hate crime made you feel sick to the stomach.

"WE SHOULD GET YOU BACK TO YOUR UNCLE," Papyrus suggested, and at the mention of their Uncle, the rabbits perked up a little, wiping their tears and calming their sobs. "I WON'T REST UNTIL YOU THREE ARE SAFE AND SOUND!"

"T-thank you," Snowball sniffed, and he pointed down the street. "H-his shop should be over there, it's the Nice-cream one."

"AH, YES I KNOW YOUR UNCLE!" Papyrus said, sounding less sad now. You thought he was trying to be chipper for the sake of the children. "JUST FOLLOW ME!"

-x-

It didn't take very long before the Nice-cream parlour came into view, it was a small and colourful building- it was painted bright blue, yellow and red. Even the sight of the place was enough to make you smile, even if it was a small one.

"There you are!"

A tall, lanky rabbit Monster rushed out of the parlour. He had bright blue fur with red in his long ears; he wore a yellow top with red jeans- a suspender draped over one shoulder. The Monster looked completely frazzled, his fur a mess and a look of complete worry on his face.

"Uncle Blue!" Snowball and Toffee yelled, running to their Uncle and hugging his legs. Caramel squirmed out of Papyrus' grasp, and went to join the group hug.

"You had me so worried!" Blue said, and leant down to hug the trio. He looked up towards you and Papyrus with a thankful smile. "Papyrus! Thank you so much for returning them… where did you even go off to, kids?"

Snowball and Toffee looked to the ground, their smiles replaced with frowns.

"Some really mean humans took us…" Snowball explained quietly, Blue's expression turning to horror. "But Papyrus and (y/n) saved us."

"Oh… oh my god!" Blue gasped, and immediately began checking his nephew and nieces. "Are you hurt? What did they do? Please tell me you're okay!"

"We're okay Uncle!" Toffee said, interrupting her Uncle's babbling. "We were just really scared."

"I bet…" Blue sighed, and gave them another lengthy hug. Once he let go, he gestured to the parlour. "You should go in now, your mother is in the back- she's been hysterical, you should go comfort her."

"Yes uncle!" Toffee and Snowball said in unison, and dragged Caramel along with them as they entered the bright parlour. Blue turned to you and Papyrus, looking weary.

"That must have been terrifying for them…" Blue mused sadly, and he approached the two of you. "I am so so thankful you found them… before… well, you know."

"It's okay," You said, with a small smile. "We couldn't just leave them in such a bad situation. It wouldn't be right."

"YES, I AM JUST GLAD THEY ARE SAFE NOW!" Papyrus said, looking quite weary himself. "THEY HAVE BEEN THROUGH A LOT TODAY, AND UNFORTUNATELY THERE WERE OTHER MONSTERS TAKEN WITH THEM… BUT IT WAS TOO LATE WHEN WE ARRIVED."

"That's so… so horrible!"

Blue said with a gasp, and in a flash he took a phone out of his pocket- quickly dialling a number. You watched as he waited anxiously for the other phone to pick up, each minute that passed causing him to fidget even worse.

Thankfully, the other person did pick up. You could tell from Blue's expression, the worry turning into pure relief.

"Ted!" Blue practically shouted into the phone, "Uh… sorry, I was just really worried. You should come down to my parlour as soon as you can, but be safe, okay? Yeah… and no I'm not overreacting. I'll tell you more when you're here… okay, love you, bye!"

Blue hung up, letting out a relieved sigh.

"For a horrible moment, I thought that Ted was one of the victims." Blue said sadly, he gave you a wavering smile. "I don't think I've introduced myself properly, the name's Bluebell- most people call me Blue… or the Nice Cream Guy."

"I'm (y/n)," You said simply, accepting a handshake that Bluebell offered. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah… I should be fine," Bluebell said, glancing towards his parlour with a sad expression. "But I have no idea if my nieces and nephew will be… that sort of trauma stays with a person for a long time."

You nodded, understanding too well what a traumatic experience does.

"WITH YOUR KIND SUPPORT, I AM SURE THEY WILL RECOVER WELL!" Papyrus said; finally back to his usual optimistic self. His words caused Bluebell to smile, genuinely.

"Papyrus, you're right, I just have to stay positive!" Bluebell nodded, he ruffled through his jean pockets- bringing out two wrapped ice-creams. "Here, have this as thanks! Consider anything from my parlour from now on as on the house, it's the least I can do!"

"Thank you," You said as you took the ice-creams, giving Bluebell a kind smile. The blue rabbit mirrored your expression.

"Welp… I should go back in now," Bluebell said, with a nod towards you and Papyrus. "We really appreciate the help, you two stay safe now!"

"OF COURSE BLUE… GOODBYE!" Papyrus said, as Bluebell finally returned to his Nice-cream Parlour.

Papyrus then turned to you, looking quite thoughtful.

"WHAT SHALL WE DO WITH THOSE HUMANS?"

-x-

In the end, you did call the authorities.

Using an old payphone by the Nice-cream parlour, you reported hearing a loud disturbance and witnessing some gang violence by the alley, where Cameron and his thugs were tied up.

To your surprise, and disgust- the police didn't seem too bothered.

"Look lady, we're all up to our shoulders with all this segregation protocol malarkey," The officer on the other end said, quite rudely. "We'll send someone out, but that won't be until tomorrow."

"Fine… thanks for nothing." You said shortly, hanging up before the policeman could say anymore. You turned to Papyrus, who was stood beside you while you made the call.

"WHAT DID THEY SAY?"

"Nothing, not surprising considering them," You sighed, arms crossed. "They'll send someone out tomorrow, or so they say. Should we just leave them there?"

"I SUPPOSE WE WILL HAVE TO, BUT WILL THEY BE ALRIGHT THERE ALL NIGHT?" Papyrus asked, sounding somewhat concerned. You gave him an incredulous look.

"I think they deserve to be out in the dark and cold after what they did, and tried to do." You said dryly, Papyrus nodding in agreement.

"YES, YOU ARE CORRECT…" Papyrus sighed, looking quite sad. "I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY HURT SO MANY MONSTERS, AND TOOK THOSE CHILDREN. IF ONLY THEY KNEW HOW MUCH BETTER THEY COULD BE-"

"They're thugs, it's what they do." You said, quite sharply. You immediately felt bad for your tone, when Papyrus looked at you with a hurt expression. "Sorry… I just don't think Cameron is even capable of anything good."

"OF COURSE HE IS…" Papyrus said quietly, as if he was almost afraid to offend you. "EVERYONE IS CAPABLE OF GOOD, BUT SOME CANNOT SEE THAT AND CHOOSE TO DO BAD THINGS."

"You really think that?" You asked, not understand why Papyrus would. The skeleton nodded, and you could tell he was being truthful. "I really don't understand you at times Papyrus, you have so much hope for people. How can you be like that after everything you Monsters have been through?"

"WELL…" Papyrus said, trailing off uncertainly. "HOPE IS A VERY POWERFUL EMOTION FOR US MONSTERS; IT QUITE LITERALLY KEEPS US ALIVE. WHEN A MONSTER LOSES ALL HOPE- HP. THEY DIE."

"What?" You gasped, Papyrus continued on- as you gaped at him.

"I WANTED TO STAY STRONG FOR SANS," Papyrus explained further, "HE WAS LOSING HOPE OVER THE YEARS, AND DESPITE HIS CONSTANT REASSURANCES I KNEW HE WAS DEPRESSED. IT GOT TO A POINT WHERE HIS HP WAS ONLY 1…"

Papyrus sighed, and to your surprise he was smiling.

"I HAD TO BE HOPEFUL FOR HIM, I HAD TO BELIEVE EVERYTHING WOULD BE OKAY AND THAT WE WOULD BE FREED. IF I LOST MYSELF TO THE HOPELESSNESS, THEN SANS SURELY WOULD HAVE PERISHED."

"Oh… wow…" You swallowed, quite unsure of how to respond. You had no idea that depression could quite literally kill a Monster, and to hear of the reasoning of Papyrus' joyful attitude was quite heart-warming.

You knew you would do the same for Alex, if you could.

"You are a good brother, Papyrus." You said after a while, your words causing Papyrus to grin widely. "A good person in general, I honestly can't say I've met someone as kind and generous as you."

"WELL, I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS AFTER ALL!" Papyrus said, and you smiled in response.

"Well, I think we ought to go back home now..." You said, glancing towards the sky- the sun was finally setting, and you were looking forward to getting into bed after such an eventful day. "The others should know about Cameron, and what his gang are up to."

"AGREED, LETS GO!" Papyrus said, and you both set off back home.

-x-

"(y/n)…"

Papyrus sounded nervous, wary. The two of you were walking over a stone bridge towards home; Mt. Ebott loomed almost ominously in the distance against the cloudy sunset sky. You looked to the tall skeleton, who had stopped halfway across the bridge- he was looking at the sky with a strange expression.

"Papyrus…?" You said quietly, cautiously. You went to stand beside Papyrus, wondering what was on his mind. "Are you… okay?"

"YES, OF COURSE!" Papyrus nodded, smiling to show it was the truth. But soon his expression turned into curiosity. "…BUT I HAVE A QUESTION."

You swallowed, and with a warm smile, you nodded.

"Go ahead."

"WELL…" Papyrus began nervously, his obvious nerves beginning to make you feel on edge. "YOU DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER THIS IF YOU DON'T WANT TO, BUT I WAS WONDERING… HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT HUMAN- CAMERON WAS IT? AND WHY DID HE ATTACK YOU THAT DAY?"

…oh.

You swallowed, having felt a sudden heavy build up in your throat. Papyrus' question was both expected and not, it made sense that the skeleton would be curious of Cameron, it was almost obvious that the two of you had history.

"I'M SORRY IF I OVERSTEPPED-"

"No, no." You shook your head, giving Papyrus a smile that was more of a cringe than anything. "It's okay; I just didn't expect you to ask that."

Papyrus stared at you a little with a kind smile, not pushing for an answer but also anticipating one.

"It's a long story," You warned, Papyrus shrugged.

"I DON'T SEE WHY WE DON'T HAVE TIME."

You laughed quietly, leaning forward against the stone wall of the bridge- your gaze fell down to the stream below. You stared at the water as you thought of the exact words to say, you felt you owed Papyrus some sort of explanation.

Even if said explanation might completely tarnish his view of you.

"In the simplest terms, Cameron was my boyfriend of five years." You sighed, glancing to Papyrus to see the brief shock flicker in his eyes. "…an abusive boyfriend."

With another deep sigh, you began to recount the last five years. The memories were painful, but you were willing to relive them for Papyrus' sake.

"He found me on the streets, when I left the orphanage. I was so scared, hopelessly lost and hungry. Cameron seemed sonice… at first…"

You could remember your first meeting like it was yesterday.

-x-

The city was painfully cold at night, the frigid air stung your bare arms and legs- the outfit you wore was hopeless against the winter weather. You rubbed your arms as you passed the many closed and boarded shops- your stomach was empty and the hunger was beginning to feel unbearable.

As you looked cautiously around the dark street, you wondered why you decided to walk down such a rough area at night of all times. The fear was building immensely; you could feel the anxiety churn your empty guts.

"Hullo love."

You froze, hearing a deep, scratchy voice from behind you.

"Come on darling, don't be rude to a fella."

Swallowing your fear, you turned to face the stranger. You were physically shaking by now, too afraid to do anything, even run.

The man who called out to you was tall, bulky, had dark hair and an even darker expression, his appearance alone set you on edge.

You stepped back slowly.

"Aw… that's no way to greet a stranger," The man said, his rough, scratchy voice was torture to your ears. "You could at leastshake my hand."

"N-no thank y-you, I should r-really be off…" You gasped out, stepping back further. At this, the man scowled, and in a quick motion he went to grab you.

You could hardly react as he pinned you against a nearby wall, the stone stabbing into your back painfully. You gaped in a silent scream as he brought a switch blade to your throat, the metal felt cold against your shaking neck.

"Now now love, give me all you got or you're going to be bleeding from that pretty neck of yours," The man said, his voice cheery despite the situation.

Before you could say anything, if you even could through the fear- the man was suddenly pulled away from you, the cold of the knife leaving your throat to your relief.

"The hell do you think you're doing!?" A shorter but still quite tall man had pulled the attacker away, giving a forceful punch that knocked him to the ground. "Get the fuck outta here!"

The attacker glared up, through his bloody nose at the blonde man- your rescuer. You watched with fear as the dark haired man stood, and thankfully retreated.

The blonde man turned to face you, and you took the time to study his face. He had a few scars dotted over his tanned skin; his spiked honey blonde hair looked stunning- even in the moonlight. His eyes were a sharp grey; they felt as if they stared into your soul.

He was beautiful.

"Are you okay?" Your rescuer asked with some worry in his smooth voice. "Did that asshole hurt you?"

"N-no," You said, voice quiet and timid. "I'm… alright."

"Good," The man smiled, and it lit up his face. He approached you carefully, and you let him. "I'm Cameron, you hungry?"

You smiled.

-x-

"After he saved me, he brought me back to his- an abandoned warehouse, nothing special but it was better than the streets. Cameron gave me food and warm clothes; he let me stay with him… "Until I got back on my feet" he said."

"BUT… WHAT HAPPENED?" Papyrus spoke up, sounding confused. "IF HE WAS SO NICE BACK THEN, WHAT CHANGED?"

You smiled, although it was sadder than anything.

"Papyrus, he lied to me."

-x-

"I'm not sure if I can do this."

You stood in a dim alley, Cameron beside you. Your boyfriend of six months staring deep into your eyes, you stared back- entranced.

"Of course you can darling," Cameron said softly, his hand still outstretched with the baggy. He looked sorrowful. "I'm so sorry, but I have to ask you. You're the only one who can do it, and we need this opportunity. They're going to kill me if I don't do this."

"Then call the police!" You argued, tears in your eyes. Cameron shook his head sadly.

"Do you really believe they are gonna help a bunch of homeless youths?" Cameron asked, and you knew the answer. It still didn't make it easier.

"But what if I get caught?" You whispered as Cameron took your shaking hands- passing the plastic bag in that motion. You clenched the bag tightly, your heart conflicted.

"You won't."

-x-

"At first it was only petty things, like smuggling small amounts of weed and cocaine." You sighed, and seeing Papyrus' confused expression, you elaborated. "He sold drugs, illegal substances, toxic things that are highly addictive… and very dangerous to humans."

"He convinced me that he had no choice, that he was tricked into the business by another dealer. I believed him, so I helped him because at the time I thought I loved him, and he loved me. But in reality, he was using me. The entire time we were together, I was his pretty mule. By the time I realized he was using me, it was too late…"

"…TOO LATE, WHAT DO YOU MEAN?" Papyrus said quietly, you didn't see his expression as you were staring down at the stream. You thought you couldn't bear his reaction.

-x-

"Cam… I don't think we should do this."

"Come on babe, it's harmless, I promise."

Cameron held the needle against your arm, so close to puncturing yet so far from the vein. He had tightened your right arm with a belt, in preparation of the drugs. You stared at the needle with fear, unable to stop your shaking.

"How can you say that? It's heroine for fuck sake." You hissed out, Cameron only chuckling in response.

"Everything I've used is sterile, the equipment and drugs are of good quality." Cameron said, trying to be reassuring. "This really isn't as bad as people say, it feels fucking amazing babe. We have nothing to lose, because we have nothing."

"…we have each other." You pointed out quietly, and the more you stared at the sharp needle- the more you were tempted.

Cameron grinned.

"…exactly."

-x-

"He got me addicted to the stuff, it was the main reason I stayed with him for so long."

Your hands were clenched tightly, you felt anger surface at the memory. You wished that you weren't so weak; you wished that you left before Cameron could entrap you in his dark world. You felt absolutely pathetic.

"If I tried to leave, I wouldn't be able to get any more of the stuff. Especially considering Cameron practically ran the drugs cartel in the city, with his word, no one would sell to me. He had complete power over me."

With a quick glance to Papyrus, you saw that the skeleton looked somewhat sick. You hoped that he didn't think badly of you, but you were too scared to ask.

"ARE YOU STILL…?"

You shook your head.

"It's not so bad now; I still sometimes feel the urge... but going cold turkey has helped somewhat. I'm in no danger of going out and buying that crap, I just get the taste for it every now and again."

"THAT'S GOOD," Papyrus said warmly, and when his hand squeezed your shoulder- you smiled slightly. "BUT… WHAT MADE YOU LEAVE?"

"That's the best part of the story," You said dryly, not being entirely serious. With a sigh, you decided you might as well go all out.

"Aside from the years of physical beatings, insults and general abuse… Cameron had tried to sell me, to a pimp."

"…WHAT'S A PIMP?" Papyrus asked, and you had to smile at his innocence. You didn't even want to taint the skeleton with the knowledge. As if sensing your thoughts, Papyrus frowned. "I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT I AM CAPABLE OF HANDLING THE ANSWER, I WANT TO KNOW THE ENTIRE TRUTH… PLEASE."

"I know…" You nodded, fidgeting nervously. "Basically that's a person who owns multiple women or men… to sell… for well… uh… sex."

Papyrus looked confused for a split second, and then a look of realization crossed his face.

"YOU MEAN SOUL SHARING?"

"Uh… I guess so?" You shrugged, not sure if it was exactly the same thing. The word had brought some impure thoughts to your mind, mainly to do with how such a thing worked for Monsters… and whether it was possible for a Human and Monster to even do it together.

With a sudden and heavy blush, you looked back down to the stream. It wasn't the right time to think of such a thing, and you wouldn't be able to look at Papyrus if you even imagined such a scenario between you.

"THAT'S TERRIBLE, FOR SOMEONE TO TRY TO FORCE YOU TO DO SUCH AN INTIMATE ACT WITH STRANGERS…" Papyrus commented, sounding sad. You nodded, feeling guilty for making Papyrus feel upset. It wasn't exactly your fault, but still.

"Yeah, I left before he could." You sighed. "The months after were hell, I had to deal with my addiction, dodging Cameron's dealers and even the police… I stole a lot of his money from his stash so I could survive, so he had me blamed for a crime he committed a few weeks before, an assault on a police officer. Cameron had me completely isolated from any help I could get… and eventually he found me again, but… so did you."

You looked back to Papyrus, who was quiet, unusually pensive. When he caught your eye, you gave him a smile.

"Thank you, if it wasn't for you…" You trailed off, the rest of the sentence hung heavy in the air. Cameron would have probably killed you, after having you tortured no doubt.

At the time, death would have seemed like a sweet release. But after meeting Papyrus, you were glad you lived.

"This is the main reason I don't trust easily," You spoke up after a moment, wanting to fill the silence. You needed to explain everything for Papyrus to understand.

"Cameron tricked me, made me feel safe and wanted. Then the truth came out, and ever since then… I've struggled to even befriend another person. But, I am glad I have you, Toriel, Frisk… the others. You've shown me that not everyone is out to get me… that there is still good in the world."

Your words seemed to have affected Papyrus, as the skeleton started to tear up a little. You froze at his reaction, unsure of what you said that was wrong.

But then the skeleton scooped you up into a bone crushing hug, and you clung back tightly. You felt a sudden rush of emotions fill you- happiness, sorrow, relief, and everything in-between.

"(y/n)… I AM TRULY SORRY YOU HAD TO GO THROUGH SUCH AN ORDEAL…" Papyrus said sorrowfully. His voice was close to your ear, causing you to shiver. He sounded quite upset, and you didn't blame him. "BUT I AM HAPPY THAT YOU TRUST US!"

Your past was a dark one, one you were ashamed of. You felt guilty for even placing the burden of it on him. When Papyrus pulled away from the hug, you gave him a sad, but reassuring smile.

His next words made you blush madly.

"I PROMISE I WILL KEEP YOU SAFE, AND THAT I WILL PROTECT YOU FROM THAT HUMAN OR ANYONE ELSE WHO DARES TO HURT YOU!" Papyrus declared, sounding so confident in his words. His tone then turned oddly shy.

"…I CARE FOR YOU GREATLY, SO THE THOUGHT OF YOU BEING HURT BY ANYONE IS ABSOLUTELY SOUL CRUSHING."

You stared at Papyrus, his words having a great effect on you. The skeleton held your hands, and his expression was so earnest it was almost painful to look at. All you could think of was leaning forward, and pressing your lips against his mouth.

You wondered how the bone would feel against your flesh.

"Papyrus…" You breathed out, and you felt an unusual sense of courage. "…was our outing… a date?"

Papyrus froze, and you watched with awe as his cheeks flushed bright orange. His grip on your hands tightened, and he seemed to struggle for words.

"I… I THOUGHT THAT WAS OBVIOUS?" Papyrus eventually said, and his words caused you to swallow heavily.

Wait, what?

"I FOLLOWED THE MANUAL PERFECTLY, I DRESSED FORMALLY- THANKS TO UNDYNE AND ALPHYS, I BOUGHT YOU A GIFT AT THE MARKET AND WE DINED TOGETHER…" Papyrus was rambling by now, and you couldn't help but burst into a fit of laughter.

Your sudden laughter made Papyrus jump, and before he could think you were laughing at him- you spoke.

"Papyrus, you missed the most important step!" You grinned. "You forgot to actually ask me out."

-x-

After your laughter died down, and Papyrus face returned to a somewhat normal colour, the skeleton looked away with some embarrassment.

"NYEH…" Papyrus sighed sadly. "I REALLY RUINED THIS, HAVEN'T I? I SHOULD HAVE REMEMBERED SUCH AN OBVIOUS STEP. I UNDERSTAND IF YOU DON'T WANT TO DATE ME, AFTER SUCH A BLUNDER…"

"Papyrus…" You said softly, interrupting the skeleton. You began to feel nervous, but also inexplicably happy.

…Papyrus wanted to **date** me?

You had many, many doubts running through your head. Your insecurities ran rampant, and the fear that came with opening up to another person, in that way, was almost unbearable. You knew that Papyrus wasn't anything like Cameron; the skeleton didn't have a bad bone in his body.

You trusted Papyrus.

Yet… you were terrified.

"You deserve better than me," You sighed, giving Papyrus a look when he went to argue. "It's true; I'm an ex-addict, severely depressed and very messed up girl. You're everything I'm not, unwaveringly kind, loyal and brave."

"THAT DOESN'T MATTER-"

"But it does!" You grounded out, a bit too sharply. You looked to the ground. "Sorry… I… I do want to date you… but I really don't deserve it… I have so many problems…"

Papyrus let go of your hands, and for a split second you thought he was going to walk away. To your relief, he just moved them to cup your face- bringing your gaze up towards his. Papyrus was smiling warmly at you, and you couldn't help but stare in wonderment.

"I AM ABLE TO HANDLE MORE THAN WHAT PEOPLE THINK I CAN, MY BROTHER INCLUDED." Papyrus stated simply. "OVER THIS SHORT TIME, I HAVE FOUND MYSELF DRAWN TO YOU. I WANT TO KNOW YOU BETTER… PERHAPS DATE YOU. BUT IF YOU ARE NOT READY FOR SUCH A THING, I WILL BE CONTENT WITH JUST BEING YOUR FRIEND. BUT PLEASE DON'T PUSH ME AWAY BECAUSE YOU FEEL AS IF YOU DON'T DESERVE IT… YOU'RE A VERY DESERVING HUMAN."

You were silent for a moment, letting Papyrus' words sink in. You couldn't help but smile, despite your fears. As the two of you stood on the bridge bathed in the sunset, you couldn't help but think this moment was absolutely perfect, everything you thought wouldn't happen was happening.

"Papyrus…" You breathed out again, looking into the dark sockets that held so much emotion. "I do really want to date you."

Papyrus smiled, it was such an honest and innocent thing it almost brought tears to your eyes. The fact he was happy with such a statement was wonderful, you almost wanted to pinch yourself to see if today was just a dream.

You stared at each other, a peaceful silence settling. Papyrus' hands were still on your face, and his fingers felt warm to the touch. You wondered if his mouth would also feel warm, so your gaze settled on Papyrus' mouth- subconsciously staring.

Papyrus swallowed, seeming conflicted with something.

"I HOPE THIS ISN'T TOO FORWARD." Was all he said before he leaned forward, and pressed his mouth against yours.

Your brain completely froze.

It was an odd sensation; it felt nothing like kissing another person- after all, there was a lack of fleshy lips. But the moment your lips touched Papyrus, a hot, electrifying sensation tingled against them.

Opening your closed eyes, you saw that Papyrus' mouth was glowing orange. You realized with some surprise that it was his magic, and the feeling of it was utterly pleasurable.

…this is so much better than kissing a human.

With a shy smile, you pressed against Papyrus in a close embrace. You tilted your head to deepen the kiss somewhat, the electrifying tingles from his magic practically jumped through your body- you felt so light headed and heated from the simple kiss.

I can't believe this is happening.

-x-

Eventually, Papyrus pulled away from you. His face was completely flushed; there was hardly any white left on his blushing skull. You looked up to him with a shy expression; still sure you were dreaming all of this.

"Maybe we should head back?" You whispered, and Papyrus nodded.

"YES, WE HAVE DAWDLED ENOUGH..." Papyrus said in agreement, and he smiled shyly. "I… I AM SO HAPPY YOU RETURN MY INTEREST, I WAS WORRIED YOU WOULD "FRIEND-ZONE" ME."

At Papyrus' words, you laughed.

"I could never friend zone The Great Papyrus!" You said teasingly, Papyrus grinned in response. "Come on, let's head back before the others worry."

Hand in hand, you both walked over the bridge- towards your home. For once, your dreary life was beginning to perk up.

You hoped it would last.


End file.
